Tired of Trying
by Sophiepicklegirl
Summary: Batman messes up big time. Can he rebuild Steph's trust in him? Joe doesn't feature in this story. Smut in chapter 17 pushes up the rating. Now it's all over, everyone got their HEA, perhaps even Connor... Thanks for coming along for the ride. xxx
1. Chapter 1

**Told you I'd be back in February! I plan to post once a week if I can, but I lead a very hectic life and RL will probably get in the way from time to time.**

**I'm a Babe so expect that to have a bearing on how this will turn out (but I'm giving you nothing more otherwise it'll spoil the story...)**

**Please leave me your thoughts, because even though I never get round to replying individually (sorry ¦o(. ) it all helps with me typing speed... ;oP**

SPOV

It's been 8 months since Joe and I split up, 6 months since Ranger and I had a 'talk' and here I am, checking myself in the mirror like a nervous insecure school girl.

In my apartment at Rangeman Boston.

Waiting for my date to arrive.

Yep, that's right, Boston. Oh yeah, and date. First date, new man...

Let me explain.

Joe had decided he needed a break from me after Bob nearly ate Rex and I went ballistic. One thing led to another and we had an all out, balls to the wall, full blown argument that even the best make up sex ever and two weeks apart couldn't fix.

Conceding defeat, Morelli put in a transfer to "anywhere that would have him that was as far away from me as possible." His words not mine. We did the dance of avoidance and he left for Texas just over a month later.

I guess it had been coming for a while but I think we both finally realised that the distance would help us to get on with our lives. I reckon he thought he'd find a nice wanna-be Mom and I'd get my shit together with Batman.

He found his match, Miranda. Batman however hadn't read the script.

Exactly one month later Ranger came a-knocking, reminding me that I owed him and that if Joe was no longer a fixture in my bedroom he'd be 'happy to do the honours', so to speak.

He pinned me to the wall of my apartment and kissed me like his life depended on it and when we came up for air I managed to push him away long enough to demand an explaination. Turns out he thought we'd make good fuck buddies. I gave him my best Burg glare and told him my heart couldn't do the limbo dance thing with him anymore and to go fuck someone else. I think I even threw in a few hand gestures as well. After a long, intense gaze into my eyes, he nodded, untangled from my body and left.

As I stood amidst the wreckage of my heart I touched my still tingling lips and thought about what had just happened. I'd been surprised by his brutal suggestion as although I knew we'd always had sexual chemistry I thought I'd recently detected something deeper. The stirrings of emotions. And not just from me.

Stupid me! Guessed wrong again, huh?

I slept alone that night and have done ever since, even though I've had a few offers. One or two even from men that didn't make my flesh crawl.

Not surprisingly, things became tense between the man holding my heart and I so I tried to stay out of his way, but somehow I ended up running searches at Haywood whenever my bank balance slid towards empty or when Tank called and begged me. When that happened I tended to keep my head down, pedal like mad and leave as quickly as the backlog would let me. Despite the fact that our paths never crossed I always knew when Ranger was there, my stupid neck hairs would raise and reach out to him. Followed by my traitorous heart.

Anyway, one Friday I was in my usual cubby hole on 5 wading through a huge pile of searches for Rodriguez when out of the blue Tank popped his head in and asked me if I wanted a more permanent role on the team. He explained that Rangeman needed someone who was personable and could speak to clients without frightening them, could provide prevent female skips from crying rape by acting as an escort and was good at paperwork. He told me he thought I was the right person for the job as I could do all of the above and could work a distraction like no other. His final point was that everyone enjoyed having me around as I brightened their day and accepted them for who they were.

Who could turn down such an offer? A steady and generous pay check, a room full of gorgeous men, free coffee and Ella... Hmm, what's not to like?

Well, there's Ranger for a start...

OK so that's a crock of shit, but it's just that he'd be too close for comfort. Eventually our paths would cross and as my heart was still very bruised, talking to him would be very awkward at the very least.

I asked Tank for a few days to think about it.

That weekend, however, Lester and Bobby appeared at the door with pizza and beer and tickled me into submission so against my better judgement I said 'yes'. One thing led to another and soon after that I became a full time Rangewoman.

Much to my relief, Ranger was rarely there which calmed my heart and my hormones. This was kinda handy because on the very rare occasion I did see him all I wanted to do was leap across the room, jump his bones and ride him like Zorro. The blank face he wore if our eyes ever met made it obvious he'd probably not be too pleased if I attacked him so I hid in my cubicle and pretended to be extra busy any time he was in the building, just in case.

After a while, and because of his regular trips out, I was able to reduce my sugar intake to three Boston Cremes a day. That together with my increased fitness (yeah, company policy and all that crap) meant I started to look and feel better on the outside, even if I was still hollow on the inside. But I pulled up my big girl panties, smiled and laughed with the MM, hid it well and shuffled forward.

I reported to Tank who seemed permanently grumpy with Ranger gone so much and I started to think I had something to do with it and it turns out I did, in a round about way.

One day, as I walked past Tank's office, I overheard him bitching to Lester about how often Ranger was absent. The door was almost shut but I heard the word 'slut' so tuned in and pretended to be studying the overtime rota on the wall outside his office.

Turned out that most of Ranger's trips away were not really business related. Being a typical testosterone filled ass hole, he needed er hm 'servicing' so he'd hop on a plane to one of the other offices where he do a brief flying visit then spend the rest of his time screwing some random woman. Tank told Bobby he was not impressed with his best friend's behaviour and asked Lester why he couldn't keep his pants on like everyone else. I missed what was said next as I was too freaked out by my stomach filling rapidly with flying bats. I quickly fled to the bathroom where I lost my lunch.

I made my excuses, blaming my rapid exit on a stomach bug and left to go back to my apartment where I tried to fill the void in my chest with Ben & Jerry's and drown out the conversation I'd overheard with Ghostbusters.

As the reality of what I'd heard sunk in I felt really sad for what would never be and for the deep friendship I'd lost and, not surprisingly, it hurt.

A lot.

It shouldn't have. Hell, I had no control over what Ranger thought or did, a fact he'd made perfectly clear, but it was then I realised I was wasting my time pining and that I needed to let him go.

I realised I was tired.

Tired of pretending everything was ok.

Tired of trying to live my life in the vain hope that he loved me back and that we would have our someday. Denial was becoming a harder and harder place to reach.

It was time to move on and excruciating as the idea was, I knew it was the right one.

The next day, once I'd recovered from my crying jag, I talked to Tank about the possibility of helping the other offices out, helping them recruit a me that could double up as distraction bait, client liaison and admin support. He'd taken one long look at me, nodded his head and that was that.

So last month I left for my new adventure and arrived early one Monday morning in the Boston office where I was given Ranger's apartment on the top floor. Funnily enough it was the 7th floor. Although the building was nothing like the one in Trenton, it made me wonder whether part of the list of requirements was that the building have a certain number of floors. Tank's comment when I checked in that afternoon was that 7 was a very lucky number in many cultures. So for once it seemed I got something right. Go figure.

All I needed was the good fortune that allegedly went with it...

The first day was spent meeting and greeting the team I was going to spend most of my working life with. Ace ran the show, with Matt as his second in command. Able and Tom were the Lester and Bobby of the group and made up the rest of the core team. Ninja (seriously), Ted, Striker and Falcon were the team leaders. Other guys came and went but I think it will take me a while to get everyone's name attached to the right face. Leon and Cindy were the equivalent of Ella and Luis and Ace said that Cindy made a mean pizza. I was sold already.

With the glowing report that Tank sent and the immediate rapport I seemed to have with my new colleagues, I started to gain confidence and even started going out socially with them too, but always as part of a group. I didn't want the added complication of dealing with egos, emotions or a relationship - I was too busy rebuilding my own shaky self esteem to worry about anyone elses.

I'd even started to think that perhaps one day there could be a life that was Batman and heartache free.

o0o0o0o0o

So. Here I am. Waiting like a nervous schoolgirl for someone to sweep me off my feet.

I looked at myself in the mirror and smoothed down the outfit I'd chosen. Falcon was taking me dancing so I'd chosen a pair of black hipster jeans and teamed it with a bright red capped sleeve, cross-over jersey fabric top that was feminine but left plenty to the imagination. I decided on a pair of solid 3 inch heels that I knew wouldn't cripple me after four hours tripping the light fantastic.

Turning slowly back and forth I smiled at what I saw. No-one would see anything other than a young woman going out for a night of fun.

No-one, not even my date, would notice the sadness and resignation that lay beneath.


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, I guess you liked the first chapter judging by the number of alerts, favourites and reviews. Thanks Guys, you make this author very happy!**

**Special thanks to Jenio1 for her astute comments that made me strengthen up a couple of the sections of this chapter.**

RPOV

I fucked up.

Big time.

Morelli and Babe had the mother of all arguments, 9.5 on the gossip Richter scale. The aftershocks of which even reached Newark where Abuela Rosa asked what had happened. Not long after that, ok 31 days and 5 ½ hours to be precise, I collared Steph in her apartment and made a suggestion that didn't go down too well.

OK, so if she'd been wearing a gun I'd have had a hole punched in my chest about the size of the one I'd just made in hers by my fuck buddy suggestion. I knew I'd lost her when I saw the pain slam across her beautiful face and she told me to fuck off. Untangling myself from her body and leaving her apartment was the hardest thing I have ever done. I wanted to apologise, to tell her the truth but I couldn't. I thought it was for the best that I go, even knowing the heart ache I'd just caused. For the both of us.

You see I believed she'd go crawling back to Morelli when he'd calmed down a bit. Let's face it, that's always been the way with my Babe, so I figured if I kept her bed warm and went at the romance thing slowly then perhaps, just perhaps, she'd choose me over him when he showed his ugly face in town again.

I'm a patient man and I love this blue eyed whirlwind with all my heart. Have done so for a long time now. So I thought she might have sussed me out by now – my cars, my men, mind blowing sex... sigh.

But _every. _

_Time. _

She went _back. _

to _that_ cop... I wondered what else I had to do to prove my feelings for her. I'm not a man who gushes and fawns over women, I'm used to that behaviour happening in reverse, but I had thought she understood me. She'd gotten to know me and was one of my best friends but looks like I was wrong, that she didn't understand... sigh (again...). As I pulled away from her parking lot I knew I would regret my stupid suggestion for as long as I live.

For now I knew I could no longer kiss her at every opportunity - I guess I'd given up that right when she told me to go fuck someone else. But the masochistic side of me wanted her to work for Rangeman, in my building, with my men. And me.

Where I could still keep her safe. Where I could see her every day and yearn for the deeply rewarding friendship I'd smashed to pieces and ground into her kitchen floor. And let's not forget the relationship I so desperately wanted to have.

So one Friday I made Tank ask her to join us. To my total surprise she said "yes". No idea why, but I knew she would be much safer working with us, so who was I to complain.

I thought keeping my hands to myself would be easy to do. But it wasn't. Every time I saw her I wanted to apologise, to grind my ever hopeful, immediately hard cock into her and fuck her until she could no longer scream my name. Then hold her in my arms forever. Then I remembered I'd screwed everything up and she'd never be mine.

Let me explain.

I've been in love only once before. Cammy Deakin was her name, we were both 17. She was a cute blond with soft hazel eyes and the darling of the school and I'd been secretly in love with her since forever. Mine was a vain hope as I was an over skinny swotty nerd - definitely no one's fantasy - and certainly no match for Jed Maitlin the captain of the basket ball team and her equally popular boyfriend.

One day I found her crying in one of the less frequented corridors and in a moment of madness I asked her to a beachside bonfire party that was coming up at the end of the week. To my total surprise she smiled at me through her tears and said yes.

I spent the week wacking off to thoughts of her pert breasts (so sue me, I was shallow) and soaring on cloud nine as I imagined her in my life forever.

Saturday night finally arrived and I drove across to her parents in my uncle's black Ford Capri to pick her up, too excited to see that she seemed distant. I'd won the prize and gotten my girl so 'who's the man?' I arrogantly thought as I escorted her in to _the_ event on the in-crowd calendar. When we arrived I offered to go get us a drink and she smiled and nodded so I quickly got into line where I boasted to anyone who would listen about my date. They were all jealous as hell and I bragged about all the things I planned to do to her, and with her, later.

Looking back I should have known it was all too good to be true but I naively grabbed my drinks and headed back to where I'd left her only to spot her from a distance silhouetted against the bonfire with her tongue shoved firmly down the throat of Maitlin. Turns out she'd been banned from seeing him, hence the tears she'd been shedding on the day I'd found her. Once I realised I'd been a convenient way of getting her to the party I vowed I would never let anyone else ever get close enough to hurt me as she had that night on so many levels. My pride, my heart, my shame...

So I wised up, grew my hair, gained a few pounds and muscles in all the right places and honed my bedroom skills with a bevy of beauties. Leaving every single one of them before the sun rose, including Rachel.

But this thing with Steph it was Cammy Deakin all over again but ten times worse, because this time I'd really gotten to know my Babe and considered her one of my closest friends. I don't have many but those that become part of this select group are cherished deeply. I've fucked hundreds of women but my Babe is the only one I've ever made love to.

Despite all the pushing and pulling my Babe has done, I'll always be hers and I love every bit of her from the deep blue hypnotic eyes that mirror her thoughts, to the gorgeous curls that refused to be tamed and the light that radiates from within like a beacon to all the lost souls that clamour to get close to her.

The hurt I felt when I was 17 was nothing to how I felt now. Only this time I'd been the destroyer. I'd been the one to do the damage but ultimately both of us were suffering as the result of my stupidity. Why on earth did I suggest being fuck buddies?

Doh? Because inside I'm still the stupid idiot dorky nerd that was once 17, that's why. Although I'm far more desirable to look at I'd never moved on emotionally until I met Stephanie Plum.

Because I couldn't tell her how I feel and risk the black hole I'd be left with when she went back to _him_. Being in love makes you vulnerable and if I admitted everything to her she could hurt me, break me in half and stamp my sorry ass into the ground. I'll admit it, she is my biggest weakness and it frightens the shit out of me, yeah, Ranger Bad ass Manoso is a coward, but don't tell anyone I told you.

Sigh (why am I sighing so much? Oh yeah, beats the alternative that involves eyes and water)

Anyways, where was I? Oh yeah, my POV...

Despite the fact that our paths never crossed I always knew when Stephanie was in the building. Being totally aware of my surroundings I could sense her presence and my neck hairs would raise and reach out to her. Followed by my traitorous heart.

After a while seeing her on 5 as a permanent member of the team and not being able to hold her, love her or fuck her became too much, even for the punch bag or mats, so I took to sneaking off to the other offices. I knew if I didn't I'd wrestle her to the ground in front of the whole team and have my wicked way with her which, judging by the coldness she radiated towards me, wouldn't have been too well received. So I hid in my office and pretended to be extra busy any time I was in Trenton and I used the excuse that I needed to get closer to my business to run away to the other offices. In reality it was warm lips and an eager body that I wanted to get closer to. Tank saw through me, calling me a sorry, good for nothing slut who should have stopped tormenting myself, manned up and gotten my woman.

God forbid she discovers what I get up to outside of Trenton. I don't want her to ever find out about my activities, but none of what I do helps fill the void in my heart and this was something that hurt.

A lot.

Not only have I lost the object of my inner most desire, I've lost my best friend. So I pull on my Bat-belt and go after bad guys. It's the only thing left that I feel good about.

o0o0o0o0o

Anyway, she's gone now and I can breathe again. She's currently in Boston and it still hurts like hell, but it's for the best. I realise that the way I've been acting is not healthy, I need to give her the space to fly. I never meant to hurt her and I'll never stop beating myself up about my own stupidity but I realised I was tired.

Tired of pretending everything was ok.

Tired of trying to live my life in the vain hope that I could persuade her to take me back and give us a chance. To offer her our someday.

I need to let her go.

Continue with my empty womanising ways and put my heart back inside its steel walls. And as excruciating as the idea is, I know it is the right one.

**For all of you who didn't see this chapter coming, the next one is also full of surprises! **

**A/n: in the UK kids can get their drivers licence at 17, I'm assuming it's the same where Ranger lives though I know it varies from state to state.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you Jwarden for getting my take on Batman! Ranger just decided to push his luck with Steph so that she'd stop her yo-yoing. Was that too much to ask? And as for the rest of his revelations, he's a man... (_my_ husband is still just a big kid but in grownups clothing...) so please ease up on him, ok? :o)**

**Thank you for all the reviews though. They've made very intriguing reading, guess I've gotten under your skin, eh?**

**Have fun with this chapter and please R & R, it makes my day xxx **

**Oh, and this one's for Margaret Fowler...**

o0o0o0o0o

The door bell rang and Steph took one final look in the mirror then took in a deep breath which she let out slowly before turning to answer it.

"Wow Stephanie! You look great." Falcon whistled out as he leaned in and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.

She smiled in reply and took the bunch of sunflowers he was holding out for her. "These are lovely, you really shouldn't have." She said as she quickly spun on her heel and walked back towards the kitchen.

Falcon nervously followed her, running sweat covered palms down the front of his dark blue tailored pants.

"Falcon, could you please call me Steph, Stephanie feels like I've done something wrong." She said as she filled the large glass vase she'd found in the cupboard under the sink.

"Only if you swap Falcon for Rees." He replied "Falcon is what I do, Rees is who I am."

He walked over to where she was standing, teasing the flowers so that they sat right, and took her hands in his. Lifting them to his lips he kissed her gently. "Shall we?" he grinned as he walked backwards towards the front door.

o0o0o0o0o

They stopped at the Hawthorne and flirted and giggled with the bartender who fawned over both of them to the point that neither of them could decide which of them she fancied. Once they'd gotten their drinks they moved to a small table near the window. Looking over the top of his cocktail, hanky panky, Rees saluted her then took a large sip of his orange drink.

"To you, Steph. For making me laugh again." He nodded at her and she lifted her mojito to her lips in salute before they both had a drink.

"Mmmm." Steph moaned, closing her eyes momentarily. Totally unaware of the adjustments Rees was now making to his pants.

"So, how did you start out at Rangeman?" Rees asked as he took another sip then grabbed a couple of warm olives to slow down his alcohol intake. He picked up the menu and pretended to study it then slanted his head slightly and waited for her reply with a raised eyebrow.

Steph smiled as she saw Rees was yet another MM who could do the one eyebrow thing. "Before I answer that" she said, toying with the edge of her napkin "is there a special training module for eyebrows?"

Rees looked at her confused.

"Forget I asked" she said as she took a sip from the squat, mint filled glass. She sighed deeply, then began. "Well, it all started over a meal at my parents" she said. "I'd lost my job and had to admit to my parents that I was pretty much destitute. My Dad suggested I give my cousin Vinnie a call..."

o0o0o0o0o

Half an hour later and another mojito down Steph finished giving Rees the bones of her last three years, the cars, the psychos, her family and friends and Joe.

"Wow!" he said. "You really have had an interesting time up till now. So, where do you go from here, I wonder?" He gave her a long, searching look.

"What?" Steph said, stepping back in her chair and folding her arms.

"Nothing, it's just that I'd heard you and Boss-Man once had a bit of a thing going on, but you've not mentioned him except in passing in your story. What's all that about?"

"It's complicated." She said abruptly "Let's change the subject to you. I know nothing about Falcon ... or Rees. Who are you?"

"Ouch!" he replied with a slight shake of the head. "Ok, where to start..."

At that point the meal they'd ordered arrived and they tucked into the steak salad Rees had chosen and the large plate of appetisers Steph liked the sound of. They finished off with two enormous desserts which Steph had insisted would soak up the alcohol. Rees' reply was to nearly fall off his seat with laughter at her absurd suggestion - they were far too pissed for the light mousse to be of any assistance.

By the time the meal was over, Rees had explained that he'd gotten the name Falcon when he was still special forces. Seems he had a skill for falling out of the sky with whatever was to hand to use as a parachute. He'd been married and divorced over an 8 year period, no kids, liked his women to have a brain and a feisty personality. He took her hand and kissed her knuckles as he made the last comment.

"Shame that the beautiful woman across the table from me fits the bill but seems to be giving off 'friendship-only vibes."

Steph blushed "Sorry."

"Don't apologise. It's not your fault you don't like tall, dark, handsome men that could help you to fly." He teased as he fished his credit card out of his wallet and waved it in the air to to attract a passing waitress.

Steph let out a slight hiccup.

"You ok?" he added, looking concerned. The waitress returned with the bill and handed it to him to sign which he did quickly.

"Yeah. Let's go dance, shall we?" Steph said as she started to stand up.

Rees smiled and grabbed her hand. "I know this great little nightclub..."

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger lay wrapped in the nameless dark haired woman's embrace, thinking about the last few weeks and how tonight he felt an emptiness in his soul that tore at his innards.

Falcon and Stephanie! Rees and his Babe! Dios! He pulled away from the warm body at his side and rolled onto his stomach, groaning softly in frustration. Stephanie Plum belonged to _him_! She was HIS woman! She was his precious gift of light. How _dare_ they!

He let out a deep mental sigh as reason entered his tortured brain. Stephanie did not belong to him, she was NOT his woman, he'd made damned sure of that, and her luminous presence lit up the lives of everyone at Rangeman.

Not just in Trenton but it seemed she'd captivated his men in Boston too.

He looked across the bed as the light played on his latest lover's torso. She was beautiful and had been a very welcome distraction from the dark thoughts he'd been having since Ace told him yesterday about the fact that Steph had a date with Falcon.

He had no right to dictate what his staff did in their private lives. As long as they performed their jobs properly he could not prevent them from doing whatever they wanted outside work hours.

So why did he hate that she was moving on without him? He was the one who screwed it up so royally so why did it all feel so raw and so wrong?

The woman at his side began to stir so he reached across and kissed her temple, muttering a quick "good bye and thank you" before getting out of her bed and reclaiming the clothes he'd thrown all over the floor earlier.

Slipping out into the grey light of dawn he slid behind the wheel of his rented Porsche and set off to the airport and back to his empty life in Trenton.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph's head started screaming with almost the same level of intensity as her bladder so she opened her eyes gingerly and found herself staring at a naked back that lay only a few inches away from her.

"Shit!" she thought mentally as she carefully slid from beneath the million thread count sheets that Ranger had so thoughtfully stocked the linen cupboard with.

Tiptoeing over to the bathroom so as not to disturb him, she turned and looked at a very content Rees who opened his eyes and sleepily stared back at her. "Hi" he said with a dreamy look on his face "Bed's too big without you, Lover" he added with a content sigh and a big grin before closing his eyes and seemingly drifting back off to sleep.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Steph hissed under her breath as she shut the door and went about her morning business. Sitting on the toilet she put her head in her hands. What had she been thinking? What on earth happened when they'd left the Hawthorne? Vague images of hot sweaty bodies and lots of loud thumping music; Rees' face closing in on hers; and laughter and hot suggestive hands filled her head in miniscule soundbites. Finishing up she washed her hands and searched out two Advil from the mirror fronted cabinet which she washed down with a couple of palms full of water before returning to the scene of the crime. There was no point in crying over spilt milk she reasoned. What was done was done. She lay on her back with the sheet pulled up tightly under her armpits, staring at the ceiling thinking omg thoughts, when an arm snaked out and pulled her close. Rees nestled his face in her hair and let out a contented, soft moan.

"Sleep, Steph, it's all ok." He whispered as his breathing levelled out again.

Steph racked her brain for images of what had happened. She remembered leaving the cocktail bar and lining up outside the nightclub. She remembered taking Rees' hand as he pulled them towards a quieter spot at the end of the bar, near the back of the club.

She remembered... crap! She'd spilled her heart out about Ranger and how damaged she was and all Rees could do was smile and make some silly comment about what a fucking idiot Manoso was. The rest of the conversation started out fuzzy and soon became a blur. The next thing she remembered was when she was fighting with the lock on her front door then giggling as they tumbled into the hall in an untidy heap and how all night he'd kept her laughing...

Now she knew the reason why. She wanted to cry but her head hurt too much for the tears to come. Instead her throat ached with a need to let out her grief.

"Shhh. It's ok, Steph. Sweetheart. Nothing happened, I promise." Rees said gently into her ear as he stroked her hair.

She turned her head to look at him, not believing a word he said.

"I like my women to be able to say my name, hell I prefer them to be able to scream it." He added with a grin as he propped himself up on one elbow and stared down at her. "I figured that when you couldn't even string one syllable together it was time to get you home." He added, kissing the tip of her nose and running his hands through her unruly curls. "You deserve better than being screwed by an insensitive prick while you're too drunk to fight them off."

"Really?" she asked, a tear in her eye welled up and slid down her cheek. Rees caught it before it could reach the bed.

"Yeah. Really." He replied as he sucked the water off his finger. "Plus, after what you said last night I'm not sure I'd want to get involved with you anyway."

She gave him a surprised and confused look.

"Last night you told me a lot of things, most of which you probably don't remember, but if what you're telling me is even half true I know I, nor any other man, stands a chance with you. Deep down I think you know where your heart rests and you need to grow some cahones and go get it back or at least try to make good the relationship you used to have with the man who holds it. You know, as well as I do, that you had all the power in that relationship.

"From all accounts Ranger has given you his cars, his men and his time. He's been a friend and dropped everything to help you when you've asked him to. Tell me what you've given him in return."

Steph stared at him as he raised his eyebrows then realisation hit home. She gulped.

"Well?" Rees pressed.

Suddenly it'd all became clear and she didn't like what she saw. She'd always seen herself as the victim but she now remembered the comment in the bar that Rees had made. She gulped and regained control. "I've treated both of them very badly, haven't I?"

Rees just looked at her, waiting for her to verbalise her thoughts.

"All three of us were involved in an ugly, never ending love triangle. Joe and I would be happy for a while, then we'd clash, usually over our jobs or the people I hung out with then I'd go off like a child, do something stupid and call in the cavalry."

"Go on." Rees urged lazily.

"Joe didn't like my independence but Ranger did so I played with them both, pulling whichever leash worked in my favour. Joe was safe and would have offered me the world if I'd just settle down and look after him. Ranger offered me adrenalin and a chance to fly but without the certainty of a picket fence."

"And..." Rees added, stroking her face and wiping away the tears that were now falling rapidly.

"So I played the victim when they both decided to force the issue."

"Steph, what _did_ you and Joe argue about that finally finished your relationship?"

"I told him that I didn't just love him, that I was torn between two men. That neither one would give me what I needed. I told him he was selfish, expecting me to change for him and that I wasn't prepared to do so."

"And his reply was..."

"That I should take a long hard look in the mirror and that he knew about how I felt about Ranger, that he wasn't prepared to wait for me to make up my mind..."

"And..."

"And that I needed to grow up and realise that my inability to decide was hurting all of them. He even added that if Ranger had a heart then he'd feel sorry for him because he knew exactly what he was going through."

"And your reply?"

"I... I told him to go fuck himself."

"Yeah, really mature thing to do Steph..."

"Yeah. But what about Ranger's fuck buddy suggestion?" Steph pouted out, crossing her arms over the sheets.

"Do I really need to answer that? You know he's terrible with words. It was probably his way of getting into your life so that he could stop you going back to Joe. The yo-yo relationship thing must have been giving him whiplash. I mean, how do you when's the right time to ask someone on a date when you don't know if they're gonna go back to their old boyfriend for the millionth time?"

Steph looked up at the ceiling for a few moments then stared back into Rees' eyes. "God, I'm a bitch! No better than Barnyard! No scrap that, she's never made a pretence at caring about anyone except herself. At least she's honest about how she feels."

"Barnyard?"

"Never mind. Joyce is not important but the sentiment still remains the same."

"So what are you going to do about it, Sweetie? I've got your back, but I'd rather not get stuck in the middle between you and the Boss."

"S'ok, Rees. You've done more than enough. The way I'm feeling right now about myself is not great. But I _will_ put things right."

"That's my girl." He added with a chuckle. He then winked at her. "Perhaps as payment for my services as a councillor we could make use of the situation we find ourselves in? Hmm?" he said with another wink and a cheeky grin as he ran the back of his index finger down the side of her face.

She playfully slapped him and he pretended to look hurt. "I think my life's complicated enough, don't you?" she added with a wry chuckle.


	4. Chapter 4

**Wow! What a roller coaster ride! Finally got a laptop that works (and a memory stick too so that I don't lose anything else!)**

**So, onwards and upwards and another chapter in this tale... Enjoy (and please review - it makes my day ;oP)**

**xxx**

Ranger finally returned to his office after a particularly trying meeting with an elderly but extremely wealthy potential client who was looking for a security firm to secure his eight warehouses.

Most of the rest of the staff had left for the evening and only the skeleton late shift remained so the lighting was subdued across much of the office, matching perfectly with Ranger's own mood at that moment.

Dios! How he needed Steph right now. She would have charmed the crusty old fart and had him eating out of her perfectly formed small hands within an hour. But no, Madisson had spent four hours picking holes in every solution he and Lester presented then proceeded to moan about the cost and the timescales.

He sat down in his dark office and turned on the anglepoise that bent over his computer, flooding the screen and part of his keyboard in light. Powering up his PC he saw that he had a report from Ace and began to read its contents.

Boston was thriving with a young woman called Vera now on board and up to her eyeballs in training. She'd successfully done a couple of distractions, under Steph's guidance, and she was starting to win new accounts with her friendly and approachable demeanour. Steph would be needed for a further two weeks to support her.

Ace then went on to suggest Babe move on to Atlanta to tame the men there and recruit another woman to function in the same capacity as both Steph and Vera. Vera was rapidly turning into a strong addition to Ace's crew and he felt Connor's team needed a similar weapon in its arsenal.

Ranger mentally snorted. Tame the Atlanta team! Yeah right!

Manoso realised that if Steph pushed too hard and Connor and his men retaliated sparks would fly, and very quickly. Sparks would quickly turn to flamethrower level... cars would burn...

Ranger sighed.

Connor may have been a wonderful soldier in the field but Ranger doubted his ability to think clearly if the Trenton hurricane with blue eyes played true to her usual tactics. The man was a chauvinist of the highest order and wouldn't take kindly to Steph's office skills, although he might take very kindly to her physical attributes. He growled as he thought about what would probably run through his mind and that of most of the neanderthals that worked out of Atlanta.

He finished reading the document then fired off a reply thanking Ace for his hard work at making Steph feel so welcome. He also agreed that Connor and the rest of the Atlanta team would benefit from her unique female perspective but added that it might not be possible for her to go down there without backup as things could get ugly. She might be fantastic at her job, but it would be like putting Daniel in the Lion's den and much as he knew she could probably handle them, it wouldn't be fair to do that to her. He told Ace he'd think about it and let him know a decision once he'd consulted with the core team.

He then hinted that he knew about Steph's romance with Falcon and covered it with a flimsy comment about her probably being sad about leaving new friends behind.

Once he'd hit the send button he leaned his head back on his chair and stared up at the ceiling.

With every day that passed, Ranger could feel his connection to Steph fade and it made him more sad than anything else had ever done. He needed her to light up his life and missed her complete acceptance of who he was. If only he hadn't been such an asshole in her apartment.

Ace was right though. The Atlanta team needed her unique perspective on things. They had failed to capture several high value bonds recently, were having problems winning contracts with potential new clients and their account base hadn't really grown in the last 18 months. Ranger knew Steph would give them all the shake up they needed. If only he could find a way back to being Professor Higgins for her without undermining her abilities.

Dios! What a fucking mess!

He blew out a large sigh, checked over a couple of quick emails from Tank then turned his computer off before heading up to 7 for another lonely meal. Chicken with lemongrass on wild rice, cooked by the wonderful Ella. Unaware of the look Bobby gave him as he passed the comms room door.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph finished up the search she'd been working on and put it in the completed pile ready to be returned to Ninja. Looking round the large open plan office she realised that her time was almost up, that she was leaving at the end of the week and that Vera would be a great asset to the team. She smiled as she thought about the woman she'd employed. She was young, beautiful and great fun and had a core of inner steel - just what Boston needed.

Additionally, Vera was just what Rees needed.

She smiled as she thought of all that had happened to bring them together.

**Flashback**:

"_Hey Steph, it's Able's birthday, fancy pizza and shooting some pool with us then heading onto a nightclub?" Tom asked as he walked into her office and knelt down in front of her chair one morning. Turning it round so that he could look at her. "Perhaps we could find a dark corner and you could play with a different cue?" he added, raising one eyebrow as he ran the back of his index finger slowly and gently down the side of her face._

_Everyone knew she and Falcon had been out on a date but that they'd become good friends rather than an item. Like the rest of the boys, Tom thought perhaps he stood a chance. None of them knew what had prevented Steph and Rees from hooking up romantically and had just put it down to incompatibility. All of them wanted to be the next man Steph dated, Tom was no exception._

"_Waddya say, Steph?" he said softly a playful look on his face._

_Steph leant forward and cupped his face in her hands. "I really like you, Tom. But right now? I don't think so. I'm really sorry, but..."_

"_Yeah, I geddit. Sorry I asked."_

"_Seriously Tom, it's not you it's..."_

"_Me? Right?" He pulled back slightly then made as if to stand up._

"_No! It's just that it... it's complicated, really it is. And right now I'm all over the place. I thought I was ready to move on but now I realise I've got a few ghosts that need to be laid to rest before I can consider a relationship with anyone else. It wouldn't be fair, trust me."_

"_This hasn't got anything to do with Falcon then?" Tom said, looking surprised._

"_No. In fact if it wasn't for Rees I'd still be in denial. He made me take a long hard look at what I've done to a couple of people that mean the world to me. I didn't like what I saw. I can offer you friendship, Tom but nothing more..."_

_Tom could see the pain in her eyes. "S'ok, Sweetie. Really it is." He knelt back down again and drew her into his arms for a hug. After a few seconds he pulled back "Gonna beat your ass on the pool table though, Plum." He grinned out._

"_Not a chance, Spence!" came the spirited reply._

_o0o0o0o0o_

"_Steph... do you think HE likes me?" Vera slurred out in her ear as they downed yet another highly coloured, very alcoholic cocktail later in a booth located in a quiet spot at the back of the nightclub hours later._

"_Who?"_

"_Falcon of course!" _

_Steph shrugged and gave her a non-committal look._

"_I know you dated him but he's free, right?" Vera asked, "What's he like in bed?" she blurted out, obviously letting the daiquiri she'd been slurping loosen her tongue. _

_Steph laughed out loud. Vera would be sooo good for Rees she decided. "I think you to would be great for each other!" she said matter of factly before leaning in and adding conspiratorially "he knows to do the right thing in the sack too." with a wink._

_Vera sighed and leaned back, closing her eyes. "mmmmm" she added with a grin._

"_Back in a mo, Vera. Gotta go pee. You gonna be OK?"_

"_Yup"_

_But Steph didn't go to the bathroom. Instead she went in search of Rees, grabbing his hand from some blonde bimbo's waist and demanding that he go meet his destiny before staggering back to the booth, towing him behind her where she unceremoniously pushed him down next to Vera and gave him silent instructions to talk to her._

_At that moment Ninja grabbed her and twirled her onto the dance floor where she proceeded to dance the rest of the night away with the rest of the gang to loud obnoxious music that for the first time in ages made her feel glad to be alive._

_o0o0o0o0o_

_The next morning Steph crawled out of bed and after she'd showered and eaten breakfast, picked up the phone._

"_Joe?"_

"_Cupcake?"_

"_Hi, long time no speak. How's things?"_

"Er... _Fine?..." came Joe's guarded reply._

"_Joe, I've been thinking..."_

_Sigh_

"_No Joe, it's not what you think. I need to apologise is all."_

"_?"_

"_A good friend of mine made me look at how I've been acting over the last couple of years and I've realised that I was a total bitch and I'm glad that you've got your life back together and moved on without me and I just hope you can forgive me and that one day we can be friends again?" She said in one long breath._

"_Woah, Steph, slow down! You want to repeat that, slowly?" Steph could hear Joe moving about, as if he was settling onto a sofa or something. Then she heard him take a drink._

"_Joe, I'm really sorry" she said again "I've had the error of my ways pointed out to me by an impartial friend and then yesterday something made me realise that I needed to apologise for what I've been up to. The constant on/off relationship. The bouncing between you and Ranger. The screaming matches. My stubbornness. My only seeing my point of view. My inability to take my safety seriously. Tell me Joe, was I really worth all the agro? I mean, you must have had heart failure every time my blew my car up!" She sniffed before continuing "I'm glad you've moved on and found someone new. Please tell me she treats you better than I did."_

_Joe chuckled "Well, she's a lot easier on the ego. And the stomach ulcer. And the..."_

"_Ok, Joe! No need to rub my face in it!" Steph grinned out._

_Joe could hear the smile in her voice. "I'm not saying that I don't miss you, Steph because I do miss our friendship. I really don't miss the chaos and madness of it all though." He added smiling back at her._

"_I'm glad that things have worked out for you Joe. Perhaps next time you're both in Trenton you could stop by and say hello? I'd really like our friendship back too."_

"_Sure thing, Steph."_

"_So... how's Texas?"_

"_Hot!" Joe replied with a chuckle "But nothing changes, same shit, different location."_

"_How's Bob?"_

"_Yeah, he's good too."_

"_Rex?"_

"_Gone to the great big hamster wheel in the sky, I'm afraid. I buried him just before I moved to Boston."_

"_Boston?"_

"_Yeah, I've been helping the Rangeman team here bring a more female perspective to their business. I've made some great friends too."_

"_Ranger?"_

"_Let's just say I don't think we'll be sending each other Christmas cards this year."_

"_Ah. I thought you and he..."_

"_Yeah, well, let's just leave it at that, shall we."_

"_Steph. Forgive me for meddling, but I really thought you two would get it together with me out of the picture." Joe thought he could detect a slight sob so waited patiently for her to pull herself together._

"_I did too." She whispered. "Gotta go, Joe, Bye."_

_"Bye" Joe replied to the dial tone._

_o0o0o0o0o_

_The next day Rees and Vera snuck back into the building at ten o'clock in the morning still in the clothes they'd partied in and hoping no-one had noticed their absence._

**End flashback**

Steph still ached to have Ranger back in her life but at least she'd laid the ghost of boyfriends past to rest. She also knew that one day she and Joe could now be friends again. If only she could be so certain about the man who still held her heart.

She powered down her computer and headed up to 7 for a quiet meal, a 'pizza à la Cindy' special with extra cheese and olives, unaware of the look Matt gave her as she passed the glass wall of his office.

**Hope this chapter was worth the wait. The next one is almost complete (Margaret Fowler...). Once again, sorry for the delay in posting this one xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter, Guys, but RL has been rather hectic as we get ready to start the Easter holidays (I never want to work with Bunny rabbit ears again, that's all I'm saying!) plus for some reason, this story has been the hardest to write to date and so I have been agonising over the wording and the best way to make each paragraph flow properly. **

**Enjoy and please, don't forget to review (it helps with the angst I'm having in constructing this!)**

Bobby was sitting at his desk finishing up a medical paper he'd been working on for his evening classes when Ranger wandered past. He thought he looked tired, but thinking about it later in his apartment over a beer with Tank and Les, he realised that that wasn't the case.

Not the case at all.

A light bulb had gone off and it dawned on him that Ranger looked resigned and defeated.

"Guys we need to do something." He said as he toyed with this epiphany and swirled his beer round in its bottle "About Ranger and Bomber I mean."

"Go on" Les encouraged calmly, leaning past his friend and grabbing a handful of cashews from a bowl in the middle of the coffee table.

"This nasty business between Ranger and Bomber. It's tearing the both of them apart. I was talking with Falcon the other day and he told me what happened on their date. In confidence, obviously." He raised an eyebrow as he looked at Les pointedly.

Les raised his hands up in submission, looking all indignant "Hey, don't look at me like that, I _can_ keep a secret you know!"

"Just make sure you do, Santos!" Tank growled before waving his bottle at Bobby and motioning for him to continue.

"Well, it looks like Rees tried to make a pass at Steph but quickly realised he was wasting his time. That her heart wasn't really into dating. He then added that it didn't take a rocket scientist to work out the why but the who? Well that came out when she spilled her heart out later over a skin full of cocktails…. Turns out she's in love with our esteemed leader. And we all know his feelings for her... Anyway, apparently a few weeks before she started working here full time he'd turned up at her apartment and suggested they become fuck buddies. Funnily enough…" someone growled at that point and Bobby was sure he heard the word "moron" but he glared at his audience and continued. "Yeah, my sentiments exactly but as I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, not surprisingly she told him to go swivel on it and the rest is as we know it. Both nursing their wounds and pretending that they aren't hurting."

Bobby looked at his friends, both of whom were looking very thoughtful. He grabbed a handful of nuts and carried on. "Rees then went on to explain that the next morning when Steph had sobered up, he threw in a few observations of his own. As he pointed out to her, she was not totally innocent in all the mess. After all, how many times had she gone back to the cop? Didn't Ranger always give her everything she needed, cars, us, himself and how many times had she run back into the arms of another man? Any normal guy would have asked her on a date and try to get her to understand their feelings for her so that she was less likely to jump ship again the moment Morelli came running. But as Rees pointed out, Ranger is not just any guy. He reckoned Ranger's fuck buddy suggestion meant that once he was in her bed he could start working on getting into her heart too." he paused to allow the comments he'd been making to sink in, finishing his beer while he sat silently.

"Looks like he might had given her something to think about because not long after she phoned Morelli up, apologised, begged for forgiveness and his friendship, and told him to have a nice life with his new girlfriend."

"Wow!" said Les.

"Has she spoken to Ranger?" Tank asked, hopefully.

"Apparently, she doesn't even know where to start. She realises she might have over reacted and thinks she's made a complete mess of everything. Now she's frightened to call him in case he backs even further away. Oh, and if that weren't enough to stop her in her tracks, somehow she found out about the other women and thinks he's moved on anyway."

Les put his beer down on the table carefully then dropped his head into his hands in a melodramatic way, sighing theatrically as he did so "What a fucking mess! I have a great mind to lock them up in a cell together for a week – or as long as it takes for them to head their heads out of their asses!"

"Not such a bad idea." Tank said, thoughtfully as he looked at his two friends. "Not such a bad idea."

o0o0o0o0o

Steph sat back on her couch, looking over at Rees and Vera who were holding hands on the one opposite her.

Ace had planned a surprise leaving do, but Steph found out and vetoed it, pointing out she worked for the same company as them and would probably still speak on the phone or catch up in person from time to time anyway. Of course the merry men had been disappointed but they knew better than to continue with their plans just because _they_ wanted to show her how much she'd changed their lives for the better.

They also figured that she'd have gotten her own back on those that went against her word. In fact, those unlucky enough to have been on the receiving end of Steph's retaliation stunts agreed whole heartedly that payback 'a la Bombshell' was an absolute bitch.

Sensibly enough, those that weren't working had taken her out for a pizza at lunch time and plied her with donuts and pastries all afternoon instead.

Vera then suggested a smaller goodbye with just the two girls and Falcon going out which Steph had agreed to but then one of the guys had taken a fall while chasing a skip and had dislocated his shoulder so all the rosters had been changed. Rees was now on standby in case of emergency and couldn't really leave the building.

Implementing Plan z meant that Steph ordered Chinese and Rees brought loads of beer then they settled in to play silly card games and enjoy each other's company for the last time.

Half way through the evening Falcon's phone went off so he headed out to the kitchen to take the call. Vera leant over the dining table, navigating several empty bottles and a stack of Jenga blocks to do so, and squeezed Steph's hand.

"Thank you for not coming between Rees and me." She said softly.

Steph crossed her brows and looked confused. "Vera, I really like Rees, but only as a friend. He was never mine - I'm not right for him but you are. You two make a great couple and I'm happy for you both, really I am. I would only have intervened if you'd been hurting each other, but I don't see that happening anytime soon."

Steph noticed Vera's shoulders relax slightly as if she was releasing tension.

"You didn't think ... Rees and I...?" Steph continued, giggling. "You know we never did the horizontal mambo. We may have slept together that's all we did, sleep."

"But you told me he was good in bed!" Vera exclaimed.

"Actually, what I said was that he knew how to do the right thing, which isn't the same at all. Though I must admit I hoped you'd take it the wrong way." she giggled again.

"It was pretty much obvious from the beginning of the date that we would only ever be friends and once I spilled my guts to him it all became clear to both of us. We talked about why I wasn't good girlfriend material and he made me realise why I was so unhappy. I'd been awful to two men who I loved, one of who I'm still very much in love with by the way, and that until I sorted my heart out there'd be no room for me to take on any more complications. Right now I need backup, support and understanding, not lovers."

Just as she finished explaining, Rees popped his head round the door frame. "Ladies, I need to pop down to 5 for a few minutes. You two gonna behave while I'm gone?" he asked with a grin on his face which quickly changed to concern when he saw Vera's jaw sitting on the floor. "Everything ok?" he asked tentatively. The last thing he needed was for his two favourite people in the world to be fighting.

"Yeah! We're good." Vera said as she got over her shock. "Be good and come back soon." She added, raising her bottle in salute. "The quicker you go, the quicker you'll be back."

Rees walked back towards the hall so Vera stage whispered loudly "Didn't you say you had a Herbert horsecock? I'd love to see what it does."

"I heard that" said a voice by the front door and the two women immediately shrieked with laughter as they heard the front door close.

"Priceless!" Steph gasped out as soon as she could breathe again. "I'm so gonna miss you guys when I go to Atlanta. Truth is I'm a little bit scared. OK, so I'm a lot scared about my reception there. The guys here have all intimated that they'll not be quite so welcoming at Team Boston."

"You'll be fine, Steph. I know you will." glad that her concerns over Rees and Steph were unfounded "You've got most of the men here wrapped round your little finger. In a nice way, of course." She added with a chuckle. "Just be yourself and they're bound to fall in love with you. Which sane red-blooded male wouldn't?"

"You have no idea." Steph replied sobering as she thought of the one person in her universe that held her heart but kept using it as a play thing. She paused slightly and Vera looked at her with a quizzical look on her face.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's just you looked a little bit sad and lost there for a moment. Does your mystery man know you are in love with him?"

"Doubt it" Steph replied, shaking her head. Both to emphasise her answer and chase away the deep brown eyes that seemed to gaze back at her.

o0o0o0o0o

Later once the apartment was all hers again for the last time, Steph wandered round, touching things, caressing the furniture and wondering about the man that had commissioned the rooms she'd stayed in for the last three months. Her heart ached for him, but her head told her to soldier on and one day everything would start to heal.

Flopping down on the bed in her thinking position her thoughts kept returning to her mystery love and she fell asleep to the images of the bat signal broadcasting over a cloudless night sky, hoping somehow he could sense her concerns and swoop in and save her.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph hugged the guys that had made her so welcome in Boston and turned to leave the building.

"I'll follow you out" Tom said with a smile on his face as he picked up one of her bags. Able picked up the other and the three of them headed out of the building where Falcon was idling at the curb in a shiny new black explorer.

"Thanks for everything, Guys." Steph said as the men loaded up the trunk. "It's been a blast. Look after Vera and Falcon for me, ok?"

"Sure thing, Steph" Able said as he drew her into his embrace and hugged her.

"Hey!" Tom said, grinning "My turn!" he scooped her up and whirled her round "Things are gonna be much too quiet with you gone, Sweetie, come back soon, ok?" He patted her ass then handed her up to the cab to ride shotgun.

"Will do Spence!" she replied cheekily as she leaned out and ruffled his hair.

She shut the door to the sounds of his laughter and Falcon pulled away from the building and into the traffic.

"You're gonna be fine, Steph." Falcon said, turning his head slightly to look at her. "Just remember we'll always be here for you. Me especially." He added giving her a knowing look. "Go kick the crew in Atlanta's butts then go home and get your man."

He winked then added "And if you need any help making him jealous, I'm sure I could be of service..."

Steph's only reply was to laugh at loud and to thank her lucky stars for Falcon, Vera and the rest of Rangeman Boston.

o0o0o0o0o

Ace stared at the empty office that up until last night had been filled with Steph's colourful clutter. Seeing the empty space he felt like something was missing. She'd been an inspiration to his men and she'd quickly become part of their close knit 'family'. They'd all known it was only a temporary thing, but something had been irrevocably altered the day she'd walked in the door.

Christ alone knows how Trenton must miss her but how Ranger had ever let her go he couldn't begin to fathom. If she'd been his woman he'd have cuffed her to his bed or his shower rail or... anything... and never let her go. He grinned as the image woke up his mini me and he mentally stroked himself through his pants. Dios! How the unsuspecting vixen had changed their lives!

He just hoped Connor and his team would see beyond the package and to the valuable asset she was. He snorted softly. God help her in Atlanta he thought then chuckled, God help Atlanta he added as he turned back to his office and sighed as he looked at the paperwork that flooded his desk then invoked his webcam so that he could put in a conference call to Trenton.

o0o0o0o0o

"She's just left."

"Good."

"Does she have any idea what's waiting for her?"

"No, I didn't want to wipe that beautiful smile off her face. Though I think a couple of the guys may have given her a slight heads up."

"Connor won't be that bad..."

"Bullshit and you know it!" Ace exclaimed as he glared at the man who stared blankly back at him. "He's a testosterone-filled Alpha-male bastard who thinks women should be pretty little ornaments - fit only for servicing his needs - and the rest of his team aren't much better!" he added angrily.

"I've had a word and I expect him and his men to behave."

Ace snorted and looked contemptuously at Ranger "Seriously? If you believe they're going to change their ways then you're even more of a fool than I thought! And how did you ever let her go in the first place, weren't you worried she'd turn her eye to someone else? You may be my brother but you're such an asshole!" he added furiously.

"Finished?" Ranger replied calmly, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah. For now. Tank and bobby were right though, she needs a man in black shiny armour if she's going to go into the lion's den. Are you gonna man up and be there for her... or should I ask Falcon to do the honours?" He smiled to himself as he watched his younger brother's face falter for the first time since they'd started their little 'conversation'. Rees had given him a potted version of Steph's relationship with Ranger and they'd decided that no-one outside of the Boston office needed to know who was dating whom. Partly because it was no-one else's business and partly because Connor and his men didn't need to think Steph was the local bicycle, with a shed in each building so to speak. Even the gossips on the team had promised to keep schtum –it was Boston's little secret and right now he was glad they'd kept it that way.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi Guys, sorry it's taken so long for the update but the Easter holidays are in full swing so I've been pretty much full on with all three of my kids (yes, I'm including in my husband in that category...) plus I've broken my left index finger (I think you Americans call this your pointer finger) I've no idea how I've done it, but it's slowed me down a bit too!**

**This chapter is a bit longer than usual, hopefully that should help make up for the delay in posting it!**

**Thanks for all the wonderful reviews you've left - h****ope you continue to enjoy - and either way, please let me know. It always makes my day. ;oP**

The journey to Atlanta was peaceful and orderly and despite her relatively calm exterior Steph was convinced everyone on the plane could hear her heart pounding and the knots twisting and writhing in her stomach. She'd been booked into first class where an over helpful air stewardess had wrongly assumed she was a nervous passenger and had checked on her several times in the first ten minutes.

Luckily she soon backed off when Steph explained that she just had a really important meeting to attend and that she needed peace and quiet. Or then again, it could have been the death glare…

She sighed mentally. If she hadn't needed to keep her wits about her when she landed, she'd have had a couple of beers to settle her nerves. Scratch that, she thought grimly. She'd have had a large bottle of tequila and then had to have been rolled down the steps. But after all the things she'd heard about Connor and his band of not so merry men, she knew that was a really bad idea.

Taking a deep breath she pretended to read her magazine, gathering her inner Ranger about her as the plane began to descend.

o0o0o0o0o

"Woah, wouldn't mind a piece of that." Trevor whistled out to Viper as a slim woman with curls and blue eyes in a smart, very expensive looking black business suit that showcased her long legs, turned the corner heading out of the arrivals gate, pulling a large and unwilling wheeled suitcase behind her with both hands.

"Yeah. D.i.t.t.o." came the slowly whistled reply moments before the woman in question reached them and immediately stopped in front of the sign they were holding up.

"Hi guys. Stephanie Plum, pleased to meet you." The woman said brightly as she extended her hand for one of the men to shake.

Ignoring her physical gesture of hello, the two men nodded silently and gestured for her to follow them. All previous positive thoughts flying out of their heads as they eyed up the enemy.

Sheesh! Why couldn't Ranger employ people who could talk? Steph thought to herself as she slipped into Denial Land and traipsed behind the disappearing figures dragging her case behind her. If and when she saw her esteemed leader again she'd have words about their hospitality skills too.

o0o0o0o0o

The black explorer pulled up to the front of a tall building and parked messily across a couple of empty parking bays that ran along the front of it. Looking out of the car's privacy glass windows and towards the main metal edged glass revolving doors Steph counted seven floors. She only hoped that she'd have the same luck within this building as she'd had in the last one then snorted internally. Right! She added to the mantra that was running through her head.

She could do this… Falcon believed in her!

She _could_ do this. Tank believed in her!

She could do _this…_ Even Ranger must believe in her...

Mentally squaring her shoulders she opened the door and stepped out onto the blacktop. No-one was there to greet her which funnily enough did not surprise her.

One of the men, she still did not know their names, had already leapt out and was pulling her case out of the trunk as she looked around her. As soon as she'd shut the car door it sped away and down a ramp at the side of the building and presumably into an underground parking lot.

Mr No Name, as Steph had called the Rangeman who'd taken her case, took it inside and left it just inside the door before nodding to the man behind the desk, swiping his security pass and disappearing through one of two brushed chrome doors which she assumed led into the offices beyond.

Steph sighed. She was used to minimal conversation when the MM were in their driving zones, but the silence that had surrounded her on the journey from the airport had been isolating and uncomfortable. She hoped it was not a sign of things to come. Slipping further into Denial Land she carried on assessing her surroundings.

The building itself was nondescript brick but there were two enormous floor to ceiling windows flanking the front door through which light flooded into a small, bright white reception area with a long, kidney shaped, black shiny desk located centre stage. On the back wall were two elevator doors which matched with the ones in the corner that Mr No Name had gone through.

Etched in a column into each of the two windows at waist height were the words

Rangeman Security LLC:

New York

Miami

Boston

New Jersey

New York? New York! She thought. When had New York been added to the portfolio? Once she'd gotten over the shock she walked inside.

Behind the desk, topped by a tall opaque glass wall, Steph could see the head and shoulders of a man who was currently on the phone, smiling and laughing. A personal call? Steph thought. Hmm, she'd be having words with Connor about that.

Or maybe not…

Picking up her case and mentally pulling up her big girl panties, Steph strode purposefully towards the desk. "Hi" she said "I'm Stephanie Plum. I believe you're expecting me."

o0o0o0o0o

Stephanie could have coped with a blank face, she thought later as she emptied the contents of her suitcase into the drawers in the cramped apartment located in the basement of the building. What she found more disturbing was when Salvadore, the man on reception, had looked her over and licked his lips before picking up the phone and calling the control room to confirm her arrival without ever even saying "hi".

A few minutes later Connor came down, introduced himself, picked up her case and then escorted her to the room she now found herself in. Obviously from the same school of few words as Ranger, he showed her where the intercom was and how to use it then left her to settle in, explaining that she should call when she was ready and he'd give her a guided tour of the facilities. He'd been helpful but not friendly, but the way he treated her was pretty much in line with the rest of his team so she hand't been at all surprised.

Steph stopped her unpacking for a moment and sat down on the small couch nestled into the corner of the long room. There was no external light which made the room feel even more prison like than it had on first inspection ten minutes earlier.

The blank walls were bright white and there was nothing to soften its sharp edges. The two single beds that pointed out into the room at the other end had one single nightstand between them and a small dismal light that tried its best to add some ambience to the room, but failed miserably. The small kitchenette contained all the basics for a short term stay, including a 2-ring stove, table top refrigerator and microwave but was tired and dated. The bathroom was adequate but again, lacked any homely touches and was pretty basic. Even the TV was a small portable and jammed onto the corner of the only table in the apartment.

If Connor and his men were trying to intimidate her they were doing a really great job of it.

Leaning her head against the wall, Steph allowed a tear to softly fall. She was not having a pity party, there was no freezer in the small kitchenette to hold anything Ben & Jerry's might have created so it was more pathetic than that. Her head was spinning as she drew in a deep breath. Sending up the Bat signal had obviously done no good. No-one was gonna save her this time. For the first time, realisation hit her that she was sailing down this shitty creek single handedly without so much as a teaspoon never mind a paddle.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger sat, arms folded, and looked at his daughter as she nervously toyed with the hem of her regulation blue and green tartan tunic, trying to disappear into the seat next to his own where she was currently squirming.

She'd been caught knocking seven bells out of a fellow student with a crowd of other girls watching and encouraging the fight. "Dios!" He thought. Neither combatant would explain what the catalyst for the brawl had been but Ranger had a sneaking suspicion that there was more to it than met the eye and that the problem had been brewing for a while.

Where had he gone so wrong? He wondered. The Scrog debacle had opened up a window of dialogue and bit by bit they'd gotten closer, much closer. Recently, she'd even taken to asking his opinion on what her future could hold and regularly updating him on the comings and goings of chez Martine. Whinging when Rachel grounded her and amusing him with humorous tales of what her significantly younger half brothers and sisters got up to. Julie'd never let on to him that she was unhappy either in her personal life or at school but here they were in the Head's office waiting to find out whether Julie would be welcomed back next semester.

Internally he sighed as he took a quick glance at the clock he could see on the Head's immaculate desk. He _had_ planned to be in Atlanta when Steph arrived on the guise of checking over some of the older more established account but in reality he wanted to earn some brownie points by offering her some moral support, but noooo, he was stuck in Miami with his daughter… Mentally he pouted as he glared at Julie. Why him? Why now?

Somehow he never quite managed to be there when it really mattered for any of the most important females in his life: Mama. Abuela Rosa, his sisters and now both Steph _and_ Julie.

o0o0o0o0o

"Tank, I'm worried." Ace said as he looked down at a piece of paper in his hand. "Where's that little brother of mine?"

"In Miami, with Julie, sorting out some... school issues. He muttered something about a last straw…"

"Ah. That's why I can't reach him then." Ace knew better than to be able to speak to his brother while he was in Miami with or without Julie. "Do you know when he's back?"

"Tomorrow, if he sorts things out. Why?"

"I'm not sure, but Vera's raised a question I can't answer and I when I try reach to Stephanie Connor tells me she's in meetings and he won't give me any straight answers. She's only been down there a day, but I'm already worried."

"I'm on it." Tank said and hung up. He sighed then got up to go find Lester. He needed to know where Bomber was and he was the one with the activation code for her earring.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph stared up at the ceiling and let out a deep breath before calming her voice in readiness for the meeting ahead. Ace had warned her that she might not get the same level of enthusiasm from the Atlanta team as he and his men had given her, but she'd not been expecting the high level of out and out hostility that she felt around her right at that minute either.

Luckily she'd spent most of the previous evening talking with Rees and he'd devoted most of their conversation to boosting her confidence. Telling her she was doing a great job. _Had_ done a great job. _Would_ do a great job. Agreed, the way she'd been 'welcomed' by Atlanta was one step up from freezing, but only because they all felt threatened by the fact she was a woman and if they couldn't see how valuable an asset she was then there was no hope for any of them.

Girding her loins and realising she was as prepared as she was going to be she stood up and slammed her hands forcefully down on the table and glowered at the men leaning back in their chairs with their legs open and their arms folded.

"Look! I didn't choose to be here either, but the Boss Man decided that you could benefit by an injection of female perspective and logic so I'm here to do just that. In my experience..."

Someone snorted so Steph glared in the direction the noise came from for a few seconds before returning to her sentence "In my experience... the woman in a relationship usually makes the final purchase decision for most things, including the house. _In my experience" _she repeated, placing an emphasis on the phrase "this usually extends to not just the interior decoration and furnishings but everything, including security. If you can't at least converse with these major influencers without pissing them off or scaring them, then you're gonna lose approximately 50% of your potential business before you even start. In Trenton for example we now have almost as many requests for installations from women as men now and some of our biggest clients have come to us based on the recommendation of existing female customers who discuss these sorts of thing over coffee, or lunch, with their friends."

Steph was watching her audience as she delivered her speech and could swear a couple of the men had dozed off and a few more were doodling aimlessly on paper they'd brought into the room with them. They were plainly not paying her any attention - stupid idiots! She soldiered on anyway.

"Additionally, you need to think laterally when skip chasing and that's where a woman can help too. As we know, most skips stay local to what they know and it's amazing how often the local community knows exactly where they're hiding. If you can get a toe hold into their community, usually by hooking up with a gossip with her ears firmly tuned into the local grapevine, you're halfway to finding them. In many ways, this information can be as strong or stronger than that gained from our more usual sources."

Someone muttered "bullshit".

Steph saw red. "Ok, tell you what! _You _can _all_ explain to Ranger why it is that Trenton and Boston now have over a 93% capture rate when Atlanta obviously thinks 60 is ok." And with that she stormed out in exasperation. She wasn't going to cry but the anger that she felt was definitely making her feel eyes sting.

"Hey, girlie. Too much testosterone for ya? No Ranger or Ace here to wipe your ass for you?" a sneery voice spat out as she leant back on the wall of the corridor she found herself in, taking deep breaths and channelling her inner Batman.

She turned round and saw red, every colour of it from soft pinky red to brilliant scarlet. Before the guy had a chance to add any more insults she'd pulled her stun gun out from the back of her cargoes and given him a full barrel load. "And I'm too much oestrogen for you, Buster!" she gritted back as she watched in satisfaction as his face registered surprise then planted itself squarely on the carpet tiles at her feet.

Behind her she heard a slow hand clap and a lazy "impressive."

She turned and looked straight into Connor's sculptured chest. Running her eyes slowly up to his face she gave him a condescending look "Silly me!" she simpered "Gosh, I wonder how I did that?" before flashing him a dangerous smile.

"Maybe I underestimated you." Connor said, sobering slightly. After all, Ranger had been on his case about this woman for the past couple of weeks. He also knew that if he and his team didn't do something soon, Ranger would be making drastic changes. He'd seen him in action before and didn't like the idea of being giving his marching orders. That said, he could still have a bit of fun, after all, Stacey, Stevie or whatever her name was was quite pretty with a fine ass and well, he might just have to tap it.

"Come with me." He nodded his head and turned towards his office with Steph reluctantly on his heels.

o0o0o0o0o

Lester laughed so hard he fell off his seat and rolled around on the floor clasping his sides. The headset he'd been wearing fell off as he tumbled. "Priceless!" he gasped.

"Santos?" Tank growled out, fishing for the earphones.

"She stunned Chase!" Les gasped out. "I would have given mega bucks to see that one!"

By now Tank was sitting in the seat Lester had just vacated and was listening to the conversation Steph was now having in Connor's office and Bobby was grinning from ear to ear. "That's my girl!" he smirked as he leant over Tank trying to catch what was being said.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks so much for your wonderful reviews to the last chapter - I hope this one doesn't disappoint!**

**Press that little button and share your comments with me when you're done - you know how to make me happy (and type faster?)**

**;oP**

Later that evening as Steph sat munching on takeout pizza alone at her stark table in 'Chez Alcatraz' as she'd dubbed her accommodation, she ran through all that had happened since setting foot in the building.

What a day of contrasts. The lack of enthusiasm and the indifference. The down right hostility. The rudeness of the leader Connor and the lies he then went on to feed her.

She thought back to their conversation just after she'd stunned Chase – oh - the arrogance of the man!

After correcting him three times, she'd finally gotten Connor to register that her name was not Stacey or Stella. It could have been that she stopped him mid sentence everytime and calmly said "Stephanie, my name is Stephanie" but she thought it more likely that he stopped being so fucking rude when she started calling him Clarence. She giggled as she recalled the shock on his face and how she'd managed to raise one eyebrow at him to silence his challenge.

Yay, go me! She thought. Steph 1, Atlanta 52…

As she reached for the last piece of cardboard that the pizza base had obviously been made from, her thoughts ran to Ranger and how much easier it would have been if she had been able to hide behind his coat tails, to bask in the strength he used to lend her.

Lend her…

Used to…

What she wouldn't give right now to know that in some way or another he still cared. Despite Rees' adamant belief that Ranger still loved her _she_ knew better. She'd been a bit of light relief, agreed he'd given her things, but she'd given him things too. Granted her gifts had little or no monetary value, but he'd known their true worth, just as she had a good idea of how many dollars he'd forked out.

Despite the 'no price' comment he'd made, Steph knew that the last thing she'd given him had been too high a price. What she wouldn't do to be able to take back her heart. One day she would, either by force or just because bit by bit it would have wriggled out of his hands.

She leant back against her chair and sighed as she rolled her eyes. Now was not the time to think about him and part of her was glad that she couldn't see his influence around her. She stopped suddenly in her mental meanderings.

That's funny, she thought, nothing about this building, its business practices or its personnel reminded her of the man that held her parting gift to him. It was as if he'd never even been here at all. As if this company was not even part of the Rangeman portfolio.

Hmmm, she thought and she quickly stopped her pity party as an idea crept into her head. Jumping out of her seat, she wandered over to her laptop and fired it up. Sauntering back with it to the table, her brain working overtime, she failed to notice the text message alert that caused her phone to vibrate.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger finished the text he was sending as Julie returned from the restrooms of the little Cuban restaurant he'd taken her to, hoping as he pressed 'send' that its contents would be read in the right way.

"Right, young lady." He said sternly as he crossed his arms and leant back in his chair. "I think it's time we had a proper talk, don't you, hmmm?" He raised an eyebrow as he waited for her reply.

o0o0o0o0o

A couple of hours later Steph went over the information one more time and grinned. She'd found the Atlanta team's achilles heel.

And they were in serious financial shit.

They had poor conversion rates as most of their quotes did not even make the final line up and that was when they even got a chance to submit a tender. They had even worse capture rates. And just last week they'd also managed to lose a couple of sizeable accounts. Funny that Connor had yet to tell anyone about it…

On the flip size, they did seem to be extremely good at some of the more unpleasant things such as redecorating and gang clearing. Why did this not surprise her! Thing was, there wasn't much call for this area of expertise in this neck of the woods.

As she turned off the laptop Steph picked up her phone intending to call Tank to discuss her findings and what she planned to do about it. Hmm, text message waiting she idly thought, expecting Falcon or Lester or… anyone but the person who'd sent her it.

Sitting down on her bed and as she read, she felt the first glimmer of hope grow inside of her. Once she finished she pressed reply. "Thank you, your support means more than you could know. Can I talk to you tomorrow about something really important, please?" She wrote quickly, before turning it off and heading to the bathroom to clean her teeth and change into her pj's.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger's phone beeped to let him know he had a message but as he was currently discussing schools with Rachel and Ron he ignored it and decided he would read it later.

Later, as he exited the Martine's house, Ranger opened his phone and read Steph's reply. Despite the fact that she was probably wanting to talk about work related matters, a flicker of hope grew in his heart and for the first time in a long time he felt glad to be alive.

o0o0o0o0o

The next morning Steph's alarm went off at 5.50am so she crawled out of bed and slid, absent mindedly, into her gym gear before heading up to three to begin her newly upgraded fitness regime.

The elevator dinged quietly so, again, without thinking she stepped inside and leant on the back wall, her thoughts on the revelations the previous night had brought.

As the car reached 4 it dinged again and the doors opened to reveal Chase who wordlessly stepped in and turned to join her on the back wall.

"Nice work, Pretty Thing." He said slowly.

Steph eyed him suspiciously and said nothing.

Just after they'd begun their ascent, Chase leant forward and stopped the car before turning to her. "Just wanted to apologise for my behaviour yesterday. I shouldn't have been so fucking rude and I shouldn't have underestimated my opponent." He added shaking his head, a wry smile spreading over his face. "You gotta understand this is not a happy ship and most of us would be on the street if we didn't tow the line and as the majority of us have _interesting_ histories, if you get my meaning, employers don't exactly line up to take us on." He looked pointedly at her.

Steph nodded in understanding, hell all she had to do was look at people like Hector and Zero.

"Just know that I'm here for you, Pretty Thing."

Steph looked long and hard at him then pressed the button to start the elevator once more. "Friends?" she asked, extending her hand with a nervous smile.

"Friends" came the determined reply as they shook to cement their new relationship.

o0o0o0o0o

"Report!" Ranger barked as he sat down the next morning to get an update on the week's activities. He pretended to listen, as he chewed over his conversation with Rachel about Julie, but as soon as Lester began to talk about the run in between Chase and Steph he took immediate notice.

He leant forward slightly, steepling his hands in front of his face, elbows on the table. No-one in the room failed to notice how much more he was suddenly listening.

Lester went on to explain how Steph had stunned Chase just after he'd turned on her earring and added that the subsequent meeting with Connor had been tense to say the least but that he had thawed slightly once he'd realised she was more than a beautiful package to be unwrapped, eaten then discarded. Several men in the room had had a faraway look on their faces as they'd imagined Steph being unwrapped...

Eaten...

Tank coughed loudly and then focus was restored.

Les' mood then changed as he went on to talk about the lies Connor fed Bomber about how well the office was doing and therefore how she needed to pack up and go home. He'd book her onto a flight back to Trenton at the end of the week. With her permission, of course.

Ranger looked at his core team before saying anything, however the whole world had stopped and neither Tank, Lester nor Bobby had taken a breath.

"Looks like there's something fishy going on so I think it would be the right thing to bring our good luck charm home, don't you think?" He then stood up, obviously the meeting was over, and turned to leave. "I hadn't realised what a mess Connor has allowed Atlanta to get into." He added sadly as he left the room.

"Yeah" said Lester under his breath "that's because you don't like to spend any time there. The ladies round there are just _not_ your type…"

"I heard that. 0500 mats, Cuz!" came Ranger's reply

All Lester could do was roll his eyes and pout "Well… it's true!" he added petulantly as he went in search of a cup of coffee.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger walked into his office and sighed.

Sighed? Since when did I, Badass Manoso sigh? He thought as he sat down. Since you first met Stephanie Plum. Came a tiny voice hiding at the back of his brain.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and at that moment, his cell phone rang.

"Ranger?"

"Yo…Babe."

"Hi" came her nervous reply "Have you got a moment?"

_All the time in the world _"Sure, what's on your mind?"

"I think we have a problem in Atlanta. I've been going through…"

Ranger zoned out slightly as his hopes were dashed. Somehow he'd hoped she wanted more than business Ranger…

…"and it looks like Connor has been playing with the figures he gives you…"

"Sorry, pardon?" Ranger spluttered, his thoughts now fully focused.

At that moment there was a weird muffled clunking noise coming from Steph's end.

"Babe. What is that noise?" he asked, confused.

"Oh, I think it's the waste pipes. I think they must go down the inside of the walls…"

Ranger furrowed his brow "Babe. Where are you staying? Can you describe the room to me?"

"Well, I call it Chez Alcatraz. It's got no windows and it's pretty basic…"

Ranger stood up, anger radiating from his every fibre. Not only were they treating his woman like shit, but they'd housed her in the emergency overnight stay for contractors. He had a perfectly good penthouse, why wasn't she staying there he wondered.

At that point he realised he'd growled.

He also realised he'd referred to Steph as his woman.

"Do you need to feed the beast, Ranger?" Steph asked, a smile in her voice.

"Sorry Babe. Carry on." He said sitting down. It would do no good to explain his outburst. He needed to hear what she wanted to talk about THEN he was going to kick some ass.

"Well, apart from the fact that he's been massaging the figures, I think Connor is focusing on the wrong business. On things that are not as profitable or regular as some of the other work Rangeman does. For example, out of the last 6 quotes he has been asked to bid on, only one of them made the last three and that one went no further. He lost the Brella and Mountjoy accounts late last week – I bet he hasn't told you that yet, has he? And he seems to spend all the men's time fitting them up to put the fear of God into the wrong section of the community or using excessive force when cleaning unwanted scum out of neighbourhoods. Did you know most of his team fear him putting them out on the streets and those that don't hate him are as unpleasant as he is?"

"Are you sure?" came Ranger's stunned reply. "Where did you get all of this information?"

"Weeeel, you know me..." she sniggered. "I looked through the company mainframe and then would you believe Chase corroborated it when we were working out in the gym this morning."

"Proud of you, Babe." Was Ranger's only reply.

"I know I stunned him yesterday, but it was Chase who did the apologising to me this morning. Something about underestimating the enemy and not being aware of his surroundings" she giggled again.

Dios! Thought Ranger as the sound filled his soul.

"Babe."

"Yeah, I know." She replied gently. "So, what's the plan, Boss?" she asked, changing the tone of the conversation before either of them said something they might come to regret.

"Well, for a start, I think we need to move you out of Alcatraz." He said slowly. "Then I want you to go and kick some ass. Leave it with me for a couple of hours, ok?"

"Sure. Ranger, can I just say something."

"oooo kaaaay…" he said slowly.

"it's just… it's just that I thought you hated me after the way we left things and well, yesterday, your text… I know you've still got my back and that means so much to me…."

"Yeah, me too, Babe. Me too." He whispered

As they listened in silence to the words that neither of them could say, they both realised that the opposite of hate was love.

Someone cleared their throat "Gotta go, Babe." Ranger said quickly "Don't go crazy."

"And don't get shot." She replied softly to the dial tone.


	8. Chapter 8

**Once again you guys have overwhelmed me with your kind words – so thank you for them and for sticking with me.**

**Next chapter is up and I'm getting a head of steam up so the one after won't be too long in posting either – though I am trying to ensure I post once a week.**

**Enjoy and please let me know what you think! (That's a hint to all of you who've put this story on alert! ;o) )**

**xxx**

"I think we need to go down and help show the Atlanta boys exactly how good Beautiful really is." Lester said quarter of an hour later when the core team, plus Hector, met up in Ranger's office to discuss the situation Steph had described to Ranger.

Bobby nodded his head in agreement and Lester tilted his face slightly, waiting for Ranger's reply.

"If we do that she'll lose any credibility she has and we all know that Connor has made it very obvious to her what he thinks of her being there." Tank argued. "He doesn't seem to have any real understanding of her potential, despite what Boston, Miami and the team here have told him." He added. "He sees her as the enemy and therefore us by association."

"True" Bobby said, nodding his head slightly in agreement "But Atlanta really need a kick up the ass and she's just the girl to do it."

"No, I disagree." Hector said, standing up and looking out of the window before gathering his thoughts and turning back to explain. "Here, she has Lula, her Grandmother, Mary Lou and even her Mother, plus all of us. She happily comes out fighting when she knows she has friends around her. Otherwise… not so good. She needs to know that people have her back before she'll defend what she believes in." He looked pointedly at Ranger who slammed his blank face on.

Looking one by one at the rest of the men, Hector continued "In Boston she has the whole of Ace's team, plus Rees obviously, and Vera who she considers to be in the bff category. But Atlanta? Only Chase so far. Not even the housekeepers Stuart and Carole have really shown her any kindness or warmth and Stuart's related to Cindy who adores Bomber. I think Connor has been deliberately isolating her to make her feel vulnerable."

"What do you suggest we do?" Bobby asked, suspecting that Hector had something up his sleeve.

"We host a series of events, games, if you will.

Each of the offices will be told the categories and they can submit anybody they like to take part up to a defined maximum per event. On top of that, one member from each office will be seconded to a different location for the duration of the games and be expected to take part in at least two things. Everyone will be eligible for transfer, no exclusions, so that way the field will be wide open for us to rig." He smiled as his suggestion sunk in.

"Interesting" smiled Tank. "I like where your twisted mind is going. Tell us more."

"We need to make sure that the person who ends up going to Atlanta is above reproach, tough as nails, resourceful and someone who Bomber trusts completely…."

"And who did you have in mind?" Asked Ranger carefully. Tank and Bobby both thought he was offering himself up for the vacancy.

"Falcon" Hector said with finality, crossing his arms.

"Not happening." Ranger growled out then stood up and stalked out, slamming the door shut behind him.

"Well boys, I think Operation get Ranger jealous is a definite goer. All we need now is for him to open his mouth and volunteer his sorry ass." A small, smug voice said from the cell phone Hector pulled out of the breast pocket of his thin cotton shirt.

"Too true, Rees." Hector said with a grin on his face.

"So guys. Do you think we can kill two birds with one stone?" Rees asked with a smile in his voice.

"Abso fucking lootley." Lester sputtered out, trying to hold back the laughter that threatened to engulf him.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger opened the door onto the roof of the building and inhaled the smog-filled air deeply, hoping to calm himself.

Part of him thought Hector's idea was a really good one, but part of him thought it was too full of holes for it to work. He chuckled and shook his head at the irony of his thoughts. When had a watertight plan involving his Babe _ever_ worked out as intended. He slid slowly down the wall and opened his cell phone to re-read his text to Steph and her reply.

**Hi Steph**

**Proud of you, Babe. You did good in Boston and the whole team up there is singing your praises.**

**I know that Connor and his team are gonna be harder work but you'll win them round. You always do.**

**Sorry I can't be there. Julie needs me right now, but know that I told Connor to look after you. If he doesn't let me know. Please…**

**Remember, no price.**

**R x**

**Dear Ranger**

**Thank you, your support means more than you could know. Can I talk to you about something tomorrow really important, please?"**

**Stephanie**

They'd both laid several foundation stones in the last 24 hours and even more so since they'd spoken. Perhaps if they carried on they'd start to build the bridges to go on top.

He hadn't realised how much it still hurt to have her so far away from him and he knew he needed to be there for her. First things first, he'd sort out her accommodation. When he went back down he'd speak to Zero to see whether he could somehow make Chez Alcatraz uninhabitable without affecting the rest of the building. He loved the nickname she'd given the temporary accommodation Connor had given her but when this was all over, he planned on asking her how to make the space more homely so that no-one else would be able to call it something similar in the future.

He smiled as he wondered what she'd make of his penthouse suite which was so very different from where she was currently staying. She'd love the scenery from the windows – they were one of the reasons he'd bought the building in the first place.

That decided he thought about Hector's competition idea. The more he ran the idea through his head, the more he liked it. But he would be the one to go to Atlanta. Rees would go only over his dead body - with her boyfriend nearly 1,000 miles away he reckoned he stood a better chance of winning Steph back…

A smile spread across his face as he started to plan his campaign.

o0o0o0o0o

Tank knew where Ranger would be. It was where he always went to clear his head.

It was where he went when he first got an order to ship out.

It was where he went when Stiva kidnapped Bomber and it was where he went after Scrog abducted Julie.

Opening the fire exit he stepped out onto the black top and scanned the roof to look for his best friend and business partner.

Having located him he wandered over and slunk down next to him. "You know Hector's idea might just work." He said without looking over at Ranger.

"From what you've said, Connor used to be a good guy but somewhere down the line he's lost it, Man. Steph might have found Connor's weakness but if he suspects she's gonna sneak around behind his back telling tales then he's not gonna stand around and let her. I think Hector's idea takes the emphasis away from her. Let's be honest, he might not give her a lesson on the mats - as you or I would, but mark my words, he'd get even if he thought she'd been shafting him. He might even decide that physical force of a different kind might be more appropriate…."

He let the strength of his words sink in.

"Rape? Do you _really _think Connor's capable of raping her, seriously?" Ranger ground out, leaping to his feet and staring down at the man who made the suggestion.

"Woah! Down Ric! I'm not saying he'd stoop that low, but he's turning into a loose cannon and you know it! I've told you several times recently that I don't trust his judgement anymore and I like his management style even less. I know he's desperate to take Atlanta for himself but he's going to destroy Rangeman's credibility if he carries on…"

"Dammit, Tank! The man saved my life. Twice. I will not cut him loose and watch him crash and burn."

"No! I don't expect you to, but I do expect you to do the right thing by him and for him. He needs help, Rangeman."

Ranger slid down the wall and joined Tank on the floor once more. He nodded in submission as the reality of Tank's words sank in. "What do you suggest?" he said, sadly.

"Let the games begin." Tank said as he patted Ranger's arm. "And may the best team win." He added with a lop sided grin.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph's cell phone beeped and she looked up from the huge stack of paperwork Connor had given her to file and grabbed it from where it sat next to the buff wallets.

Quickly reading it she pressed reply and typed in the answers to the questions raised. Then she deleted it and quietly returned to her filing, hoping that everyone was aware she was still in the room and hadn't sneaked off to create mischief.

Half an hour later an alarm rang round the building. Everyone on deck that day ran to the comms room to see what all the fuss was about.

Steph gave herself a mental high five as Connor raced up to the guys on monitor duty. "Why's the fire alarm been raised in Stephanie's apartment?" He barked out, looking at the monitors that scanned the corridor just outside her room.

"Not sure, Sir" Came the panicked reply.

"Bring up the schematics. Quickly! I need to know if the sprinklers have been deployed."

"Yessir!"

Steph stood and watched in mock horror as the sensors confirmed that they had. She groaned, hoping it sounded like she was pissed off.

"How much water?" she asked, her voice cracking. Christ! She thought. "And the winner of best actress goes to… Stephanie Plum for 'It's raining in Boston!' "

Out of the corner of her eye she saw one of the men speaking to someone on the phone. As he finished his conversation he turned to Connor "Mains water has been turned off by Stuart and he's heading down there to assess the damage."

"I'm going too." Steph choked out and headed to the elevator with Connor hot on her heels.

o0o0o0o0o

"It's all ruined! Everything!" Steph almost shrieked out. Nothing, despite knowing what was going to happen, had prepared her for the mess that met her eyes.

"Where am I going to stay tonight?" she added, softly as she waded into the water logged room and grabbing her kindle from the puddle it sat in.

Connor was standing behind her with Chase at his shoulder.

"Boss, there are no rooms free on 4, but 7 is empty." He added softly.

Connor said nothing but stared momentarily at Steph before nodding. Turning on his heels he barked out "Where the hell are Stuart and Carole? Get them to get this mess cleared up." Before storming off to the elevator.

No words were spoken but both Steph and Chase knew she'd won this round.

Stephanie 2, Atlanta 52…


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanks so much for your wonderful reviews they mean so much to me - I know some of you find my English different but I do try to write American English as much as possible so please bear with me (every now and then I want to rebel and write things like tarmac instead of blacktop or Mr Kipling instead of Tasty Cakes, but then I realise you would have to go find translations as I do and I know how tedious this is. What is lox, by the way?)**

**Anyway, next chapter is up so read and enjoy and as ever, please, please, please let me know your thoughts (especially if you've put me on alert etc and not left me a review, hint, hint)**

Steph walked woodenly from a now very wet Chez Alcatraz and although part of her was pleased that she'd managed to escape, part of her was sad that anyone had had to stoop to such drastic action in order to save her. True, no one had been shot in this latest rescue, but even so, she'd needed saving. Again.

Chase stood silently by her side in the elevator but as soon as the door shut he subtly leaned into her and squeezed her hand. "It's ok to need and use help offered by others you know" he said softly just as the car stopped so that they could get out on 7.

Steph followed Chase who gently led her through the calm, artificially bright space and up to a plain black wooden door which he opened with a key fob.

"What the fuuuuuu…" he whistled out softly with shock in his voice.

"?" she added eloquently, muscling past him.

They stood, too shocked to move, and looked at the boxes that littered the room, on every available space. Small boxes, large boxes, wobbly piles of paper – all lining the edges of the room and spilling over onto the kitchen counter tops and dining room table. It was everywhere!

"What the hell has Connor been up to?" Chase whispered as he moved further into the apartment. Steph followed behind him shaking her head in surprise. Stepping into the bedroom they could both see that the mess had not spread quite that far. Yet.

"Well at least I have a bed for the night." Steph giggled out, hysteria tickling the sounds as she made them.

At that moment her phone rang and without thinking she pulled it off her belt and opened it up.

"Yo" came a very welcome voice.

"Ranger" Steph replied with a broad smile on her face as she felt his strength roll down the phone and push her panic away. Everything was going to be fine. Her knight in shining armour had stepped up and gotten her back.

"How's our plan working?"

"Well, I don't think we'd legislated for the state of your apartment…"

"Babe?"

"Well, there are boxes and paper piled up everywhere and I mean _everywhere_" Steph said as she took a lid off one of the boxes and pulled out a few scraps of scribble covered paper. Seems I'm looking at the real history of Atlanta. Not the version you've been fed." Her mind was working overtime as a tiny flicker of an idea started to form.

"Babe." came the stoic reply.

"Yeah. Connor's in real deep." Steph looked at Chase and gestured for him to sit down. He looked round for a clear spot and plonked himself on the arm of the sofa where he crossed his arms to wait.

"Ranger. I think I _may_ have just come with a way to dig Connor out of some of the mess he's in and maybe even win some brownie points with him too. Let me run an idea past you and see what you think."

"I'm listening" Ranger asked, thinking how stunned he was by this amazing woman. He'd wrestled with the best way to deal with Connor and if her thought processes were going in the way he was now thinking then perhaps Atlanta would work out. Probably without its current leader, but that was a thought for another day.

Minutes later, Steph had explained her idea.

"I think that may just work, proud of you Babe. See you tomorrow morning then." He said softly. "I'll phone Connor and tell him I'll be on the red eye. That should give you enough time."

"Can't wait." She replied to thin air. "Aaagh! She thought, he so needs phone manners!

She turned round to Chase and filled him in on the plan she'd just agreed with Ranger. Connor wasn't going to know what had hit him, but if he got on board with it, it might just save his skin.

And that of the rest of the Atlanta team.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger looked up as the phone on his desk rang.

Show time.

"Yo" he said as he picked it up, his voice deceptively nonchalant.

"Boss, Connor here. There's been a situation." He stated as he paced round his office like a caged animal.

"Explain." Trying his best to sound puzzled.

"The sprinkler system has destroyed the apartment Miss Peach was staying in. She's ok but her stuff is ruined."

Ranger took a deep breath, Connor assumed it was because of the damage to his building. He was very wrong.

"God dammit Connor! It's Plum! The woman's name is Stephanie Plum!" Ranger exploded. "Is she ok? Did the water seep down to the next floor?"

"?"

"Did the water manage to leak down onto 6?"

"Ah…"

"Connor?" Ranger had him and he knew it so decided to come clean. Taking a deep breath he sat down to begin his confession.

"Well, we've been using 7 for storage. There are a few more sensitive files and some new equipment up there so I decided it was best to put her in a er… a different apartment."

"Which was..."

"The… the contractor's overflow." Connor took a deep breath. He knew Ranger would be furious and judging by the silence and tension that began pouring down the phone at him he was right.

"I. Want. You. Up. Here. Now." Ranger gritted out slowly, all the time thinking "And the winner of the best actor award for his role in 'pissed off of Rangeman' goes to…"

"Scratch that. I'm coming down there." He added. "I'd be with you this evening but I have a meeting to go to so I'll be with you tomorrow - crack of sparrows. I want to know what the fuck you've been up to! I told you to look after Miss _Plum" _He said, emphasising her surname "and you put her in the spare accommodation that I wouldn't even put your Grandmother in if there was an emergency! How could you?"

Ranger took a deep breath, he knew he had to keep his cool otherwise he could give the game away. "Do NOT move _anything_ from _anywhere_! I want to see for myself what the hell you've been up to and what you've done to 7 when you have perfectly acceptable storage on 1 and 2."

"Sir yessir." Connor barked out, nodding his head like a bobble head as he heard Ranger slam down his receiver. He mechanically and slowly returned his phone to its cradle then, still in slow motion, put his head in his hands. When Ranger saw what he'd been up to he'd be even deeper in the shit than he was already, he thought. Damn that woman! Everything had been doing ok, hadn't it? That was until she came along and all eyes began to focus on his operation.

He sat unmoving for several minutes as he tried to settle his nerves and the bile that was threatening to make an appearance. How on earth was he going to wriggle out of this one, he wondered. At that moment he looked up, just as the woman at the centre of the storm walked out of the elevator and straight towards his office.

Could his day get any worse? He sighed.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph walked up to Connor's door and knocked then waited.

"Come in, Stacey." Came the strained command.

As she entered the room, ignoring his salutation, she turned and shut the door before walking over and sitting down opposite him. "Looks like you're in deep doo-doo." She stated matter of factly "but I think I might have just the shovel you need to get out of this one."

Connor looked at her, panic etched into the side of his eyes. "How?" he said, looking at her like a cornered snake. "And why?" he added.

"_Why_ is easier to answer so I guess I'll start with that."

He nodded for her to proceed.

"When I first came across Rangeman I was a clueless, bumbling BEA and spent most of my time covered in garbage or Vaseline or… well you get the idea. Despite all that though, Ranger must have seen something in my rather unique methods that made him want to help me. I always got my man even if I did take the long and rather messy way round to do it. And whatever he saw must have been worth all the chaos and mayhem I caused despite all the weird things in my life. I come from a very scary gene pool, just ask Santos about my Grandmother. I have some very dubious friends including a dope head and an ex-ho and I have an ex-boyfriend that used to stand and yell at me whenever my cars blew up…"

"Pardon?"

"Yeah, one time I even totalled a Porsche Boxster that Ranger lent me…" she said with a wry grin on her face.

Connor whistled through his teeth "and he still employed you?" he asked incredulously.

"Yeah." Steph snorted out, shaking her head as she thought about how unlikely it all seemed "Like I said, Ranger must have seen something he liked."

Connor sat and thought for a few moments "but I still don't get it. Why would you help me after all I've done to alienate you from the team since you've arrived?"

"Because we've all done things that are morally grey, but sometimes they slide into completely FUBAR but by then we have no way of stopping the train. One small lie turns into ten big ones and by that point there's no turning back. I've never lied to Ranger, but I've often landed myself right in the middle of trouble – pretty much of my own making – and yet he has always been there for me..." Well for the most part she thought as her mind wandered back to the DeChooch deal and the last real face to face conversation they'd ever had.

"Anyway" she added, changing the subject away from matters close to her heart "I've been through your computer based company files. The real and the fakes ones by the way, and know all about the parallel world Atlanta is really in and can see how it's all happened. I have no idea of the motives behind anything, but I do know that you're in deep shit. If you feel anything like I have felt when I've dug myself in too deep, then I know exactly how desperate you are for it all to stop…"

"Bullshit! You know nothing about me…" Connor snapped.

"True, but neither did Ranger when I first met him and he's really come good for me." Momentarily she stopped and thought about that statement. She'd file that one for later. "I didn't say I _understood_ why you've done what you've done, but rather that I _know_ what you're probably thinking right now…"

"Don't patronise me, Susan!" Connor ground out.

"I don't mean to. And you need to drop the name changing it's getting old, Clarence! But right now you need me. How many other people know what's really going on here? Hmm?" She leaned back and crossed her arms, her eyes flashing dangerously as she raced towards full rhino mode. Lula would have been proud.

Connor looked at her in surprise. She looked like a tiger defending its young and somewhere deep inside a part of him begged the rest of him to trust her. Another part of him started to wake up and wanted to join in the action. He shifted in his seat to accommodate his growing problem. Dios! This woman was something else and he could see how come she was so captivating.

He nodded in surrender. "Ok, what plan have you got? Manoso's coming down here for first thing in the morning."

"Good, we should have enough time. So, onto the how…" She smiled as the started to outline her plan.

o0o0o0o0o

Connor dragged Mungo, Pike and Robo up with them to 7 where Chase was already hard at work.

Mungo was Connor's second in command who, from what Steph could see, had a very good idea of what had been going on. She also realised he was waiting for the wheel to fall off before he went brown nosing to Ranger.

Bastard.

The two other men who'd been drafted in to help were a set of yes-men twins that had served their country well, but had been the followers rather than leaders of men. Everything Connor asked them to do they did with quiet efficiency, questioning nothing.

Once this was all over, there'd be some changes in personnel, but not necessarily the ones Steph originally thought.

o0o0o0o0o

Ella brought dinner up to 7 where five men were deep in discussion.

"No! Absolutely not!" protested Bobby. "No-one is going to practice their sewing skills as part of this exercise!" He leaned back, his arms crossed and stared at Lester. "Come up with a good idea or shut the fuck up, will ya?"

Lester grinned. He was bored with trying to put together a set of tests so was trying to piss off the men around him instead.

"It was your stupid idea, Hector. So you decide from the list we have." Tank said, rolling his eyes in true 'Burg style.

"Well, Boys. If you want my opinion, you need to think differently." Ella said as she pushed her cart into the room. She'd heard the conversation and was waiting in the hallway for the right moment to interrupt them. "I thought the whole idea behind this scheme was to make Connor and his team re-think their stance on women so I suggest you need to look at this from Stephanie's perspective. What does she bring to the party and how can you use this to teach the boys from Atlanta a lesson?" Ella explained before rolling her cart past the five astonished faces and heading into the kitchen.

"She's got a point." Ranger said shaking his head. "Let's eat and think then start again, shall we?" he added as he stood up to follow his aunt into the kitchen. Four hungry men followed behind, deep in thought.

o0o0o0o0o

"Ok, let battle commence" Connor said as he picked up a file, scanned the title then put it down on the floor by the front door. He picked up a second, flicked over the name and it too joined the pile.

"Right then, everything loaded over here is to be taken down to 2. Steph, can you find some colored labels and put them on these files. We'll put them in bay 4 for later."

"Sure thing."

"No worries."

"Yep."

"Wilko."

Came the replies.

An hour later most of 7 had been moved downstairs, although following a suggestion from Steph some of the motion detectors, control panels and computers were left to make it look like part of the lounge had been used for bone fide storage. Connor didn't need to know that Ranger knew what had really been going on, but making it look like they were pulling the wool over his eyes would win Steph the first of the brownie points she planned to get before he turned up in the morning.

After a quick pizza the three of them settled in to begin the process of sifting throught the remaining eight accounts that would win her the rest.


	10. Chapter 10

**Wow! Guess you still like this story - thanks so much for your reviews as well as all the new alerts I've gained. I hope the next coupla chapters fill in some of the blanks in our character's lives...**

**Please note, in order to fit with the timeline, everyone is 5 years older than in JE's world...**

**Anyway, please R & R, you know it makes sense!**

Connor's POV

Bit by bit I've let the monster in me rule my life.

Rather than locking it away after each mission, I've allowed it to hang around a little bit more each time. Finding it harder and harder to force it back into its cage.

I am no longer more man, I am more animal.

What have I let myself become?

For years I was a good guy. Great brother to Lauren. Dutiful son to Wilma and Harry. Faithful husband to Megan, well nearly husband, we never quite got to the justice of the Peace to make it official. Then came the day when it all went wrong and my life as I knew it was blown away.

Literally.

It was eight weeks after the fateful mission where I saved Manoso's life. The fool had gotten a laceration on his ankle, rookie mistake and one I was really surprised he'd make. After all, he'd been special ops for about a year by then and had already started to build up a rep for himself. Anyway, the cut got infected which was to be expected in the middle of a rainforest and I had to drag his sorry carcass back to civilisation. Easier said than done as he went into toxic shock on day two of my rescue operation.

Anyhow, back in the US I returned home and quickly reverted to the fine upstanding pillar of the community I had always been. Well, that was until I put everyone I cared about on a plane and sent them to their deaths.

I should have been with them.

I should have insisted the training I had to attend wasn't as important as the trip of a lifetime to Europe.

I'd made a shed load of money from the ops I'd undertaken so had decided to splash out and send my family on the trip of a lifetime. They'd all been so excited when I told them about what I'd planned. I told them it was my pleasure. That I wanted them to experience a bit more of life. Turn some of their dreams into reality. That I wanted Mom and Dad to be able to look back in a few years and remember with fondness all the things they'd done while they were still young enough to do so. That Lauren needed to see a bit of what the world had to offer so she would know why she was studying so hard to get a good job. That Megan needed to experience first hand a few of the places we would explore in more depth on future vacations.

That was probably the worst good idea I have _ever_ had and, let me tell you, since then I have had plenty…

Sigh…

Mom and Dad had a wonderful time and did so many of the things on their to do list. My sparkling, vibrant, full of life sister, Lauren met a guy in London and hinted that she was falling in love. I kick myself when I think how old she'd be now – 29, nearly 30 – maybe even with the guy she'd just met. Sadly we'll never know whether it was just a wonderful holiday romance or whether there was anything more to it, they never got a chance to find out. What a fucking waste!

Sigh… again…

Megan and I had talked regularly and texted constantly while she was away and she'd given me a complete run down on the places she wanted to take me back to. We'd even decided it was time to get our papers in order and go see a judge. You see while she was away she found out she was pregnant, just over 6 weeks, and for the first time in my life everything was mapped out before me and I kinda liked it.

Ok, so I fucking loved it!

Admittedly the idea of being a parent thrilled and freaked me out all at the same time. But I knew, just knew, that this was it for me. I was in this for the long term and I couldn't wait to hold my woman in my arms and never let her go. Once we'd shared our news we decided to add one more leg to the trip, so I booked an internal flight that would take them all down to LA, where we'd rendezvous with Megan's parents and do it. Tie the knot. Complete and start a new life together.

So, back they all came, full of excitement, happiness and love. They picked up their last plane – from Boston to LA…

United Airlines 175…

September 11, 2001…

I got one final text that morning from Megan, it read "Thank you for our wonderful trip, know that our last thoughts will be about love, not about what is about to happen. Don't hate us for leaving you. I'll always be in your heart so will our child, remember us but when the time is right move on and love again. For me. Please?. Megan-belle. Xxx"

So we never got our happily ever after and I shut down completely. Everything I cared about was gone. I went on the most dangerous missions, came back a little more broken every time and let my humanity slide with each return.

I'd been working for Manoso for six months when my world died on that plane. I was running Atlanta, very successfully might I add, but slowly and surely I pulled away from his influence, subtly altering my environment as I did so. The Boss never picked me up on it. The figures spoke for themselves. All was well. So I guess he was happy to let me carry on doing my own thing.

About a year after 9/11 I started gambling and drinking to hide from the demons which still threatened to eat me up each night as I struggled to find peace in the dakest hours.

Eventually, I used up my own not insubstantial inheritance, after all I was an orphan so had gotten quite a pot full. Once it was all gone I began to eat my way through my own savings and when they were depleted, about a year ago, I started to cook the books on a couple of the bigger Rangeman accounts so now I had additional almost limitless funds to keep on with my unhealthy lifestyle. The files that Stephanie, Chase and myself have just finished going through are the worst ones though all the others I'd stashed in 7 have been skimmed to a certain degree. I know I'm fucked but I can't stop. I'm in too deep.

I probably owe Rangeman close to a mil with no way of paying it back.

Somehow I thought I'd find a way to sort it all out, just like I pretended with my humanity. Each time I went to the casinos I thought "tonight's gonna be my lucky night" but it never was and I always walked away the poorer.

I always thought that somewhere, up there, Megan was looking down and protecting me, being my guardian angel. In fact there were a couple of times when I thought it to be true, but I never expected my real guardian angel to come flying outta nowhere in the way that she did.

...

Manoso told me I was getting a woman come visit the team.

A woman!

Shit!

I haven't _talked_ and I mean _really_ talked to a woman since Megan. I've fucked a whole battalion full of them, what can I say. The woman I tend to attract are the pretty, ornamental ones after sex with a dangerous and seemingly wealthy man, but I can't remember actually talking to a female in over ten years.

Then _she_ turned up, threatening me with her goodness and honesty. Stephanie was everything Megan had been and everything I no longer had. Boy, was I pissed! I put her up in the worst accommodation the building to offer and fed her to the wolves. Her stunning of Chase was priceless but even then I thought I could chase her away and return to my pain and misery and carry on using my own men as an extension of my own despair.

How wrong was I, huh?

When Stephanie sat down in my office and explained about how she thought I was feeling I could have cried. How the hell did she read me so well? The bullshit merry go round had gotten faster and faster and now I couldn't get off. She was right, I just wanted the damned thing to stop. But when she went into attack mode? Fuck. me...

I nearly creamed myself.

I'd heard rumours about her and the Boss but just thought they were that but when she got all territorial as if Rangeman was somehow hers and I was destroying her baby, I could see that perhaps there really was something going on.

Again, I could have cried!

I mean Manoso is _the_ most closed off bastard of us all. He may be good to look at and have a reputation for knowing exactly what to do with a woman between the sheets, but other than that? Pretty little ornaments. What can I say?

The plan she came up with was a fair one and for the second time in less than ten minutes my impression of Stephanie Michelle Plum changed. Yeah, I do know her name, all of it, and her birthday too. I even know she has a grandmother that should be registered as an illegal weapon…

Anyway, I'd better make a start on all this paper. It's not as bad as it all looks, well apart from the handful of accounts I've truly fucked Rangeman over on.

I need help. Not just with the mess I've made at Rangeman, but with my heart and my mind. The moment she offered her assistance I knew that somewhere deep within me the man I used to be still lurks, buried away beneath the agony and shit that I have let my life become. I may not make it out of tomorrow alive, but least I know that I will have had someone want to stand in my corner. Perhaps with Stephanie on my side I might just make it out alive…

Sigh.

Steph POV

I watched Connor leave with a heavy heart. It was gone two in the morning and we'd just finished going through the accounts he's really done a number on.

I still don't know what on earth has led us to this point, but Rees said not to push it. If Connor wants to tell me, he will. I may not be able to stop Ranger from killing him, but it would be nice to know what turned a good soldier with a great sense of honor, into the untrustworthy scumbag that he is now.

From what Les and Rees have all told me, he used to be a good man and tonight, underneath all the bullshit bravado, I thought I saw glimpses of the guy they told me saved Ranger's life and served his country with courage and determination.

They told me he was on a mission in some godforsaken jungle when he saved Ranger's life. Neither knew the ins and outs of the story, but apparently Connor carried him for three days back to civilisation where he was treated for some nasty disease he'd picked up in a cut on his leg.

Actually, Ranger really has only one really ugly scar, just above his left ankle. I bet that's the one they were talking about.

But now?

Now Connor reminds me of a caged, wounded animal that's just been through life saving surgery. Not able to determine whether it's a good thing that he's where he is or not. Les said to stay clear and Chase told me he can get violent if pushed so to be wary round him. I would love to know what the hell happened to change him into a man who would bite the hand that feeds him, but I've kept my curiosity at bay.

Chuckle…

Can't believe I'm not snooping and digging, but something tells me I need to let Connor come to me. He's started to give me his trust and I'm not gonna throw it away. My spidey senses tell me he needs me more than he realises and I plan to be there for him, regardless of the outcome of the meeting with Ranger tomorrow.

Ranger…

Sigh…

Why can't he need me like I need him? I want our friendship back. He's been there for me this week, yet again coming to my rescue in my darkest hour. But will he pull away again when this is over?

I love him so much and I need him in my life. This separation has all but killed me. I have tried to put him out of my head and my heart. The former I've managed to some degree because of how busy I've been, but the latter?

Nah.

Not a cat in hell's chance.

Everything I've done has been centred round my hurting heart. I want him to fill the void he left when he walked out of my apartment.

Sigh.

Shit! Can't believe I'm crying! I'm so weary. Of everything! I want to go back to how it used to be. When I first met the man in black. When things were simple. When my life was complete without Batman in it.

Crap! Where's a kleenex when you need one? Sniff.

Sniff.

Deep breath…

Anyway, it's now two thirty in the morning - the last time I was awake at this time was during the DeChooch deal.

Sigh.

Anyway, better get some sleep before the shit hits the fan tomorrow.

I'm tired, it's late and Ranger's bed awaits.

Now, where did I put my big girl panties?


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm sorry, I'm really sorry for the delay in posting this latest chapter. Got carried away with a couple of projects and RL which is typical but sooo frustrating at times. Can't blame my tardiness on the kids though, they've been egging me to get on with it (and my husband keeps asking when I'm going to make him rich... sigh)**

**As usual, you guys really know how to make a middle aged woman very happy with all your wonderful comments. Please keep up the good work and help me to sleep happy in my bed at night!**

**Enjoy:**

Chase POV

Seven hours!

Seven fucking hours is all it's taken to confirm that Connor is the lying cheating bastard I had him down for. He deserves to rot in some third world jail for the various stunts he's pulled!

I've only worked here for about a year and we don't normally cross paths very often, but there's always been something off about him. A couple of the others, who've worked here much longer, say he wasn't always this way, especially those here on the core team.

Ha!

Team!

That's a fucking crock of shit!

(Deep inhalation of breath to calm himself.)

Anyway… where was I?

According to a coupla the guys, Ranger and Connor were buddies. Great buddies. Founding members of a security empire type buddies. 'Cept that Connor never wanted to invest but was happy to support his friend by heading up Atlanta.

Not a million years after the office went live something happened. He's not entirely sure, but Lester thinks it was all female related. Figures. Take a muscled-up alpha male, fuel him with testosterone and an over inflated ego, throw in a piece of skirt most likely with loose morals and a big mouth, light touch paper and retreat to watch the fireworks.

Ass hole!

According to the gossips after that he began to change.

Slowly but subtly.

Bit by bit.

Until that point Connor was always corporate Rangeman personified, keen on developing carbon copies of every aspect of Ranger's vision in each building. It was his idea to have seven floors for good luck. Can you believe that?

Pfft, neither can I!

Well apparently, about the time that whatever happened _happened_, he started to transform this place. Gradually at first, swapping out the letterhead paper to something slightly less white, altering the shift patterns, that kinda thing. Once he'd done that he focused on the fixtures and fittings and he's now remodelled extensively. He _said_ it freshened up the building and worked better with the Atlanta client base.

But now I know better. He did it so he could pull yet more money out of the coffers to waste at the crap tables…

Whatever the catalyst, not only is that asshole about to go down for embezzlement he has also managed to create a really unhealthy workplace. His second in command, Mungo, is a really nasty piece of work and a few of the others seem to be one step up from the jungle too. Admittedly you can't tar everyone with the same brush, but with our pasts and reps, well let's just say, beggars can't be choosers otherwise quite a few of us would have walked long ago.

Me included.

Then Stephanie arrived. I'm no saint but I know one when I see one. Steph is either our guardian, or avenging angel - jury's still out on that one - but as soon as she walked in that door I knew things were about to change. She's like a welcome breath of fresh air and I for one have felt the tidalwaves she leaves in her wake. In fact, the moment she showed her feisty New Jersey colours and stunned me she I was hers.

Yeah, I know I bitched about it to anyone who would listen, but really! Who is their right mind is dumb enough to get stunned by a tiny little slip of a woman? I knew I had to bad mouth the woman otherwise I'd have had even more trouble living it down and the teasing I got was bad enough. If only the guys knew I'd fallen just a tiny bit in love with her... well let's just say I'd be beggin Manoso for a one way ticket to A-stan...

Sigh.

Why Stephanie feels the need to help a man that has treated her so badly I can't even begin to guess but that seems to be the nature of the woman. She always seems to look out for the unexpected. Perhaps she can see things in us that we can't….

I know from Rees that the two of them have been out on a date but that it went no further as there's dickhead out there that she's pining for. If and when she gets over the fucker that strung her along and then broke her heart I plan to step up and tell her how I feel.

Anyway, much as I would prefer to stay with Stephanie and show her what she means to me I'm not gonna push it. Quick shower to get rid of a little problem that has just arisen from thinking about her then off to bed. Tomorrow's gonna be a long and complicated day, I just know it.

Sigh.

Ranger's POV

I'm finally going to do what I should have done years ago. Connor is going to get the help he needs – far far away from my cash box. I've been ignoring the shameless misuse of Rangeman funds for far too long now, always giving him the benefit of the doubt. I doubt I'll get my money back but it's not really to do with that, it's what he did to my Babe. That was the prompt I needed to make me face the truth.

I hadn't realised how far down the road to depravity he's gone, but now I get it.

Connor needs help. There I've finally admitted it.

Connor for once and for all needs to put his head and his heart back together - or die trying. Oh I know he's already been there and done that, but now he needs to come back to me as a whole person again. To become the man I grew up with.

I may be a heartless bastard, but to lose your entire life just because some unbalanced religious cleric decides to rearrange part of the New York skyline and litter the ground with innocent bodies…

Well, the enormity of the loss? It doesn't bear thinking about but I get that this is all that Connor really thinks about. But he needs to end the grieving process and move on, get his life back on track. Maybe even begin to live in the real world again.

Sigh.

When my team and I finally tracked Bin Laden down, I had the honour of sending him to hell and I did so with Megan's name dripping from my lips. Yeah, I know everyone thought it was the Seals, but hey, there isn't even a name for me and my team, we just do what has to be done and let everyone else take the glory. Not that I'm complaining, they can keep the glory – they didn't get paid 1/10th of what we received.

Ha ha…

Sigh.

People think I don't know what's been going on. I know about 6 accounts that Harrison, our accountant, said were down just over $865,000. I've been monitoring things on and off for a while now, but I've been hoping against hope that my former best friend would come clean.

But it would seem that Babe is not the only person who can live in Denial.

I'm normally such a good judge of character but I let my loyalty to the man who was not only my closest childhood friend but who saved my life, get in the way of my judgement. I should have called him out years ago.

My Babe had him sussed out in less than 48 hours from their first encounter! Thanks to her I can now let him go off an heal safe in the knowledge that he will get exactly the help and support he needs – as with everything she does, her plan is simple but effective.

I just wish our relationship was that too.

Lester has been giving me shit about the way I've treated my woman, both before and after I let her run off to Boston. There, I've said it.

My woman.

I've manned up to myself even if I've not told her how I feel. Maybe I'm like a recovering alcoholic – admitting it to myself is half the solution.

I seem to be having quite a few epiphanies at the moment and here's another one… I'm a coward and I should have been honest with Steph rather than feed her some bullshit lines about 'condoms not rings' 'line items under entertainment' and my absolute favourite 'go back to Morelli and fix your relationship'.

I am such an emotional and spiritual dessert. What on earth did I ever do to deserve Steph in my life? If I _ever_ have the luxury of her trust again, I promise to cherish her and tell her how I feel, tell her how much I need her in my life, how I can't function at 100% without her.

If the fuckers on Stark could see me now! Ha! How the Mighty Manoso has fallen under the influence of a piece of white bread from the 'Burg… White skin, creamy white skin. Blue eyes, bright deep blue eyes. Big heart, such a fucking wonderful, big heart…

(Cough and subtle movement of pants to accommodate rising situation followed by blatant ignoring of hopeful looking stewardess who is current eye fucking him.)

The plane lands in just over 15 minutes and I expect to be in my building by 0730. I doubt my Babe will be up but I am guessing Connor won't have slept much.

Fucker!

Where was I? Oh yeah. My other plans for today.

The games we've organised are far more in line with Ella's suggestions. She was right, the tasks had to highlight a woman's skills and showcase the reason for doing this in the first place. Don't get me wrong, we won't be doing strategies based on 'How to survive Black Friday (or whatever the hell it's called) in one piece' or even 'the noises to look out for to alert you to the fact that Babe is eating a pizza with extra cheese'. No, the tasks we've come up are far more simple and effective.

There's that phrase again – simple and effective. Maybe that is how I should approach getting my Babe back into my arms. Yeah, right, simple and effective are not words to describe anything remotely related to our relationship. I tried the simple bit but not the effective bit last time and look where it got me.

Sigh... again.

I miss my woman so much. I need to be part of her life again. In any way she'll have me. I just worried that she'll kick me into touch once I've helped her out. After all, she thinks I think she's a mill stone round my neck – how far from the truth can you get! I love her so fucking much and every time she does something to defend me or mine it makes my heart swell with pride.

I just hope she lets me in. Lets me be her friend again.

I can't take back the past – my stupid comment, my need for control and how immaturely I reacted to her pulling away from me, but now I'm ready to man up. I'm tired of trying to pretend that all I need is a nameless fuck. I'm tired of all the make believe I've invented.

I want her back and I'll do anything to prove it to her.

Sigh.

If that air stewardess tries to stuff her tits in my face one more time I swear I'm gonna throw her out the window! Dios!

Rees POV

So D-Day is here. I doubt any of the players have a clue about the agendas the other people have.

Steph wants to heal people and inveigle her way back into Ranger's heart.

Connor wants to come clean, admit he's fucked up and to get the help he so desperately needs for whatever his problem really is. I also think he's ready to submit to whatever punishment Ranger dishes out so that he can begin to claw his way out of the abyss he's in, hanging on by his fingernails.

Ranger wants to prove to Steph he can love her for who she is and to show that he is the right man for her. I think he'll start with trying to understand Connor and help him.

And Chase? He's already half in love with one of my best friends and wants to prove that he too can support and love Steph.

OMG what a cluster fuck with Steph stuck right in the middle. If they're not careful they'll rip her to shreds all in the name of love.

FUBAR?

Not even close!

SNAFU is more like it.

When it all goes tits up, I wonder who will walk away standing?


	12. Chapter 12

**Sorry for the delay in posting this. I finished it a few days ago but wasn't happy with how it flowed and then yesterday as I was proofing it, I decided to re-write most of it - typical! This revised version is far easier on the eye, I hope!**

**Thank you for all the wonderful things you wrote after the last chapter, hope this one lives up to expectations...**

**Please R&R I would say it makes me type faster, but somehow I still end up taking longer be****tween posts that I would like!**

**Enjoy:**

Connor was just getting his guns out of his safe when he heard a knock on his door. Swearing slightly at the idea that someone might see the state of his apartment he carefully put his guns on the unmade bed and quickly padded out of his bedroom shutting the door, and the worst of the chaos, behind him.

"Hello" Steph said to his surprised face.

"Er…" came his eloquent reply.

"Thought you might need some moral support" she added by way of explanation, leaving out that she too would be facing her worst fears if she went with him to pick up Ranger. What if her hero didn't want her in his life?

"Why? Why would you want to back me up like that?" he asked, clearly shocked, as he stepped aside to allow her entry.

'Guess you do want it then' Steph thought as she followed him into his untidy space. "Let's just say I know what it's like to be on the wrong side of Ranger." She added looking round the messy room and letting her eyes settle on a picture, clearly taken some time before, of Connor wrapped round a young woman. "May I?" she asked as she went over to pick it up.

"I'd rather you didn't" he growled softly. No-one touched that picture.

No-one.

"Who is she?" Steph said gently as she gazed at the love that radiated from the small frame.

"Megan. My life, my love, my…"

"Light?" Steph asked as Connor struggled to complete the sentence.

Connor coughed. "Yeah. Something like that."

"Where is she now?" Steph pressed, knowing that something about the story behind the picture was fundamental to Connor's present predicament.

"Dead. 9/11"

Steph nodded, turning to look into his eyes. She moved forward slowly and gently smoothed the skin on both of his hands which hung limply at his side. He flinched.

"Don't feel sorry for me! Don't you dare!" he hissed out, pulling away and running his hands through his hair in frustration. "It was my fault! All my fucking fault! They should never have been on that flight…"

"Shh" Steph whispered as she pulled the now distraught man into her arms. He tensed but allowed the contact.

"The only person at fault in this is the bastard who flew the plane." She said softly as Connor fell apart in her arms.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger picked up his carry on luggage and began to march towards the exit. The plane had flown in a holding position for the last ten minutes of the flight, subjecting him to ten. more. minutes of plastic boobs and fake peroxide blonde hair. He sighed, grimly.

Whichever fuckwit Connor had sent to collect had better not be late, he thought. He was in no mood for anyone's drama today.

He looked at the mass of people around him and sighed. He knew he should have taken the private jet but it was already booked out so he'd had to slum in with the rest of humanity. For some reason he was tense, outwardly he looked calm but inside he was a gibbering wreck. He laughed at his own pretense, he knew _exactly_ why. What if the light of his life didn't want anything more to do with him?

He mentally gave himself a shake down, knowing today would be tough. And if he didn't stay focused he would probably end up shooting Connor and losing Stephanie for good. He needed to get a grip and calm down. Dios! How had everything come to this?

"Because you are a coward!" a little voice inside him sneered out "you should have sorted this out long before it all spiralled out of control. Idiot!" it added smugly.

Suddenly he was through the gates and exiting the walkway. How had that happened he wondered. He mentally snorted at the realisation that he was not aware of his surroundings - his Babe would be whooping with undisguised glee at the revelation.

"Good job she's not here then" the nasty little voice said happily. His mood darkened at the thoughts that swirled round his head.

He scanned the area looking for a familiar face, or at least one with a blank look and black clothing and his eyes opened wide as he focused in on the two figures walking his way. He dropped his bag in surprise.

"Ranger!" Steph yelled. Seeing his stance as an invitation she picked up the pace and ran into his now empty arms.

"WTF?" Connor thought as he stared at the sight before him. He could not remember the last time he'd smiled, really smiled, but all of a sudden he found himself laughing.

Laughing at the shocked face of the killing machine before him.

"Babe." Ranger said as he pulled her further into his embrace. "Dios! I've been such a fool! I. Have. Missed. You. So. Much." He added between kissing every part of her face which now rested between the palms of his hands.

Suddenly, for all three of them, things were starting to look up.

o0o0o0o0o

"Just fucking do it, Santos. You know you want to!" Tank growled out as the pair of them sat looking at the keypad that would enable them to listen in via Bomber's earring.

Ranger should have landed by now and they knew Connor was picking him up. Allowing for him disembarking and then hooking up with his lift, they calculated that he should be at the Atlanta offices anytime. They just wanted to make sure they didn't have a body to hide.

"On your head be it." Les replied as he completed punching in the codes and giving him a knowing look.

"…so. Much."

The pair looked at each other quizzically then heard the gentle rubbing sound of skin brushing skin, a soft wet kiss, a sigh then the whisper of a moaned 'Babe'.

"O-Kaaaay! Think we've heard enough!" Tank barked out, going red as he stood up.

Les's laughter was the only sound that could be heard as the big man fled the room.

o0o0o0o0o

The trip back to Rangeman Atlanta was quiet. Steph and Ranger were snuggled in the back, no verbal words were being spoken but plenty was being said as they held hands and melted into each other.

Connor drove, ignoring what was going on behind him, focusing instead on his own loss so very many years earlier. Although he was finding the electricity in the back of the vehicle a little overpowering, somehow, at the same time, it warmed his heart. Ranger Manoso was a man very much in love.

RANGER MANOSO was in... love!

Mr emotionally devoid, killing machine, ass kicking mercenary was. In. lurve!

He sighed as he remembered back to the conversation he'd had with Stephanie earlier in his apartment.

_Flashback_

"_Shh, it'll all be ok." Steph said, trying to placate him as she held him and let his tears fall._

"_Fuck off…"_

"_Seriously?" she said, pulling back so she could see into his face. "You think you're the only person whose world stopped turning on that day? Have you even been to Ground Zero and wept for all the others who had loved ones ripped from them in such a calculated way?"_

"_I said fuck off…! I'm having a melt down and all you can do is remind me about other people's grief?" he grumbled out, sneaking back into her arms._

"_I lost someone close too that day." She whispered sadly against his ear._

_Connor pulled away completely "Yeah right, you're just saying that so that you can get on the bandwagon – you're as bad as all the rest!"_

"_You really think I would make up something like that? You really are more selfish and stupid than I thought! I think about my Uncle Harry every time I see a fire engine go past with its lights and sirens on." She huffed out indignantly._

_Connor suddenly stopped his pity party and looked at her._

"_Yeah, Harry Plum was a firefighter who died trying to save others in the South Tower. Everyone said he was a hero as he'd chosen to go in and try to help but that didn't stop my aunt from falling apart." Steph said as a large tear fell down her cheek._

_Connor slid closer "What happened afterwards?" He asked earnestly, keen to know if there was a happy ending to this tale._

_"Once the tears had stopped,_ _Auntie Anne pulled up her big girls panties and set up a support group for other widows with young children. She kept telling everyone that life goes on and that Harry would have wanted her to get back up into the saddle. She remarried three years ago. She'll never forget my Uncle, but knew that she deserved some happy too and that she owed it to both of them to go find it."_

_Connor smiled a wobbly, lopsided grin "sounds like an amazing woman." He said as he brushed the tears from her cheek._

"_No, just someone dealt a shitty hand who has tried to put her life back together."_

_Connor took a deep breath of air. Now he knew he'd let the memory of his guilt overwhelm Megan's last text. Shit! He'd allowed himself to wallow in his own self pity and never given himself a chance to move on. Walking over to the dresser, he picked up the picture and handed it to her._

"_This picture was taken a couple of months before she left on a trip round Europe. While she was away she found out she was pregnant…"_

"_I'm so sorry for your loss…" Steph said as she studied the image in her hand, tracing the two people with her fingers._

"_Yeah, me too. Do you know what she asked me to do when she knew she wasn't going to make it?"_

_Steph shook her head._

"_She told me to live my life and that her and our baby would be looking out for me. Guess I haven't fulfilled my part of the bargain." And that's why she sent you to guide me back he added to himself._

_End flashback_

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger kissed Steph's head as they drove down the ramp to the underground parking lot that she'd seen on her first day here, just under a week ago.

"Babe, we need to talk." He whispered into her hair as he pressed one lingering kiss into her soft curls. If she hadn't have known better she have guessed he was savouring her smell, then he breathed in slowly, confirming her theory and she was sure she heard him whisper "Dios! What you do to me, Babe."

She grinned as he pulled away, obviously as reluctant as she was to break their hold on each other. Frightened that reality would set in and the other person would try to run away.

"Your place or mine for that conversation?" she replied, cheekily and she could swear he groaned.

"Pulling the tiger's tail, Babe." He replied as he ran a finger along her jaw line.

At that moment Connor pulled into his parking space and the three of them quickly exited the Explorer.

"I mean it Babe. We need to determine the rules of engagement for all future battles and any subsequent retreats…" Ranger said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her back to his side.

Steph put a finger against his lips, stopping him mid sentence "no more retreats, Batman. Agreed?"

"No more retreats." He replied huskily.

Behind them both Connor coughed, purposefully breaking the moment.

Ranger looked deeply into her soul then nodded as he slammed his blank face on and turned to face the man that had just allowed him to get his woman back. Shit! He thought. Connor had just saved his hide… again.

"Shall we?" Ranger asked forcefully as he led his woman and a condemned man back into the building.


	13. Chapter 13

**Guys I'm so sorry for the delay in posting this chapter - what with the girls being off for half term, my husband's birthday, my eldest daughter's birthday, work commitments yada yada, things have been a little manic! Anyway, this chapter is finally polished (or at least as polished as I'm going to get it...) so here it is...**

**Oh, before you read any further, thanks soooo much for your wonderful reviews - hope this chapter does not disappoint! Please R&R, you know you want to!**

**xxx**

Lester grinned as he thought about Tank's reaction to the scene they'd both just witnessed. Serves him right, nosey bastard, he thought as grinned as he recalled Tank's expression.

However, it would be selfish _not_ to share what he had found out he figured.

A smile slowly spread across his face and he slid back in his chair with his hands behind his head. Yes, indeed, it was only his _duty_ to share pertinent information…

He leaned forward and picked up his desk phone from its cradle - Mr Gossip to the rescue!

He took a quick look to check no-one was walking past his office, wouldn't do not to be aware of his surroundings after all. Looking totally innocent, he dialled a number.

The phone at the other end was answered almost immediately it rung.

"Rees?"

"Wassup Bro?"

"Well, you'll never guess but…"

o0o0o0o0o

Chase stirred his coffee absentmindedly as he thought about the last few days and the blue eyed whirlwind that had crashed into his life, stunning him in more ways than one.

Stephanie Plum was one hell of a woman and once the dust had settled regarding Connor he planned on asking her out on a date. Given that a few of the men in the office knew something didn't quite stack up with his boss, he figured he probably had to cool his heels for about a week – two tops while the mess was cleared up and Atlanta was fully functional again.

He could do that, he could wait, hell he had learned patience in the field, waiting for the perfect moment to complete an op. Yeah, two weeks max then he'd make his move.

It would help, he decided, if he could find out who the mystery guy was that Steph still had feelings for. Perhaps he could find a way to better the memories and create new ones that included him. He smiled at the idea then took a large swig from his latte coloured, caffeine laden mug before straightening up and heading back to his desk. Just as he reached the middle of the room the elevator doors opened and three people stepped out.

Chase nearly dropped his coffee but his stomach took a dive instead as he saw the almost caressing gesture Ranger used to steer Steph out of it and onto the floor. Anyone else would have missed the movement but added to the almost look in Manoso's eyes and the way that Steph somehow looked taller, stronger, he knew. The pair, with Connor leading the way, headed silently off to the main conference room.

Chase doubted anyone else could see that a relationship had clearly been established at some point since Ranger had landed this morning, but he could tell this was the man Stephanie had been pining for and a light bulb went on in his head.

He realised there was no point in competing for her affections now.

He continued back to his cubicle as if he'd noticed nothing unusual but all the while he left parts of his plans scattered round his feet like confetti. He'd heard rumours that Manoso had had a woman in his life until recently, he just never suspected who it might be. As he eyed the pair of them surreptitiously as they carefully avoided touching, he took a deep breath and sat down, determined to bury his disappointment in the work laid out in front of him.

His coffee mocked him, the hot drink within the mug mirroring the colouring of the man who clearly still held his whirlwind's heart.

o0o0o0o0o

This is it. I'm gonna be fired in public! Connor thought as the idea stood, arms akimbo in the middle of his head and leered smugly at him. He was so lost in the thought that he missed the gasps then the "WTF" reactions and then the cheers from his co-workers. Did they hate him that much? He mused. What kind of monster had he become!

Horrified, he tuned into the words being said.

"…two weeks to prepare. The forms will be posted on the control room wall. Connor and Stephanie will make the selections…"

Whaaaat the f…? WTF indeed, Connor thought. He looked round the room and saw not condemnation but excitement on the faces of the men before him. Stilled by shock, his thoughts whirling, he turned his head to look over at Ranger.

"Dismissed." The man said before turning to face him directly. Neither moved until the room was empty then Ranger handed him a matchbox sized box..

"Open it. Before you go up to my apartment." He said, gesturing to the cardboard container.

Connor tipped his head slightly and frowned.

"It's not going to bite."

Connor gave the man before him a slight and nervous smile and pulled on a flap at one end which gave easily as his frantic fingers fumbled with the edge. The contents spilled out. Carefully he unfolded a piece of sand coloured ragged cloth, examining it for clues as to what it was. Could it be? Was it… A few grains of sand spilled from its folds to confirm his suspicions.

"I think you know where it's come from."

Connor swallowed loudly, looking up at his boss. "Thank you." He whispered as his eyes filled with tears.

"Head up to 7, take Stephanie with you. I'll be up shortly, I have a few phone calls to make."

Connor nodded then turned and fled, grabbing Steph by the hand and dragging her behind him.

O0o0o0o0o

Steph pushed the door open and walked into the foyer of Ranger's apartment, Connor hot on her heels.

"Oh My Fuck! Oh God! I… I can't do this!" Connor wailed, slumping down unceremoniously, like a sack of potatoes onto one of the dining room chairs, head in hand.

"Yes you can, and you will! Now stand up and face the consequences of your actions like the man I KNOW is hiding inside that pathetic little exterior!"

Connor's head snapped up "Who the fuck gives you the right to order me about? You ARE NOT my Mother!" he whined out petulantly.

"No, but I still care!" she reasoned. "And I'm sure if she could see you now she wouldn't allow you to hide behind what you've allowed yourself to become either!"

Connor took a deep breath, the wind knocked right out of him by Steph's angry reply.

"Look, I'm not trying to make your life any harder, but you need to 'feel the fear and do it anyway' and all that shit." Steph said softly, sliding down onto the couch next to him and emphasising the well known saying using her fingers to create air quotes. "You know Ranger cares otherwise you'd have been on your way to a third world country by now. Just accept whatever judgement he metes out and grow some balls."

Connor nodded, taking a deep breath as the thought of a one way ticket to the out skirts of humanity faded. She was right! Manoso had a way of burying things so that they never resurfaced and here he was, still in one piece.

"I'm so fucked!" he said softly.

"I know and that's why I'm here for moral support."

"Thank you."

Steph nodded, reached forward and squeezed his hand, then went in search of the coffee which she was sure she could smell emanating from the kitchen.

o0o0o0o0o

"Chase" Ranger said as he waved him towards the large rectangular dark oak dining table where Connor and Steph were now sitting, side by side. A tray containing coffee cups and a thermal jug, several bottles of water and a tray of fruit sat along the middle like a barrier.

Connor nodded then joined Ranger, sitting almost at the same time as he did. He looked at Steph to check she was ok, she seemed to guess he was checking up on her so nodded back. His shoulders relaxed slightly and he gave her the beginnings of a smile.

Ranger started fiddling with his cell phone which he then lay down on the table, by his side was a pile of buff wallets – proof of Connor's misdemeanours.

"I call this meeting to discuss Connor Deary's alleged embezzlement activities. Can you hear me ok, Will, Alex, Emma?"

"Loud and clear, Carlos." Came three replies from the other end of the phone.

"Attendees are myself, Carlos Manoso CEO and founding member of Rangeman LLC, Will Harrison, VP of Rangeman's finance department, Alex Sautelle, Rangeman's attorney, Connor Deary, outgoing VP Rangeman Atlanta, Stephanie Plum, Head of New Business Development and Chase McKendry, Temporary Acting VP of Rangeman Atlanta... Emma Harding, Alex Sautelle's secretary, will be notating."

All heads snapped to Ranger.

"Since when have I become Head of New Business Development?" Stephanie asked. "And since when has Chase taken over?"

"Babe."

Stephanie took that to mean that all would become clear.

"I call this meeting to discuss the monies that Connor Andrew Deary has allegedly taken for his own personal use. I believe this sum to be approximately $850,000. Do you agree with this, Will?"

"Yes."

"Thank you Will. Do you deny taking this money, Connor?"

"No." came Connor's almost audible reply.

Ranger nodded "Are you in a position to pay it back?"

Connor shook his head, "No" he said, the word almost looked to be causing him physical pain.

Ranger nodded then turned to Steph. "I understand you helped look through the accounts that have been worst affected, is that right, Stephanie?"

Stephanie nodded.

"For the benefit of those listening, Stephanie Plum has just nodded her head."

"Ok, so down to business." Ranger said, leaning forward slightly in his chair and placing both hands on the table. "Connor, in your own words, could you please describe how you took the money and why."

Connor nodded and briefly outlined how he'd skimmed the money and explained that he had used it to pay for his escalating gambling habits. Even Steph was shocked at how bad it had gotten, neither she nor most of the people listening had realised how much he'd squandered.

When he had finished the room was silent, stunned by what Connor had revealed. Steph took the opportunity to top up her cup of coffee, no-one else moved.

Moments, or perhaps hours, passed as people processed what Connor had confessed but at some point Ranger cleared his throat, bringing everyone back to the here and now.

"Connor, you will step down with immediate effect, Chase you will be taking over…"

"What about Mungo?" Chase asked, stunned that Ranger really had meant what he said when he called him Temporary Acting VP earlier in the meeting.

"Until we conclude this business, Mungo, like the rest of the personnel at this satellite office, will be under review. Stephanie Plum is a very valued member of my core team…" Connor chuckled and Ranger raised an eyebrow at him. "As I was saying, Stephanie is a valued member of my core team and has a sixth sense that has, on a number of occasions, saved me both time and manpower."

I trust the information she provides and from what she has told me it is clear that Chase has been extremely helpful in the last few days, whereas Mungo has been looking for any excuse for some time now to take over the running of this operation. I doubt that any of you are aware that he phoned me last night to tattle on what he'd been asked to do earlier yesterday." Ranger paused and let this next revelation sink in. Some might even have argued he looked smug as he told them about the call.

"The next two weeks will be spent sifting through the accounts that Connor has been skimming from. Will, what time does your flight arrive?"

"10am day after tomorrow. I have business that keeps me here until then."

"Good. That should enable you to put together a severance package should it not, Alex?"

"Plenty of time, Carlos, so no problem. Would you like me to fax it over or send it with Will?"

"Send it with Will, I'll finalise the details with you once this meeting is over."

"I'll be waiting for your call."

"Make sure your transcript from this meeting will be in the package too please Emma." Ranger added.

"Will do." the gentle but efficient female voice confirmed.

"Ok" Ranger added "Connor, for the next two weeks while you serve your notice, you will stay on lock down in this building and work with Stephanie on putting together teams for the up and coming tournament. Once you have completed this mission, you will travel back to Trenton where you will join a bereavement counselling programme and once you finish, we will discuss your future. Understood?"

"Yes." Came the subdued reply.

"Ok then, gentlemen and ladies, this concludes this meeting. I expect its details to remain within these four walls, understood?" Everyone nodded or verbalised as appropriate.

"Chase, Tank will email you your new contract this afternoon. Everyone dismissed."

Those in the room stood up, as if to leave the apartment.

Steph looked at her watch. Just over an hour had passed and in that time Atlanta's office had been irrevocably altered forever. Connor would get the help he so badly needed and Chase would get the promotion he deserved. Additionally she would be there for Connor during the next two weeks when they would build something positive together and maybe, just maybe he would start to remember that the female race was not the enemy. She grinned internally as she considered all that things that had happened in such a few short hours. Yeah, Badass Manoso had a heart and she planned to keeping it, all to herself.

"Not you, Connor."

Chase and Steph shared a look across the table then made a dignified dash for the exit.

Out of the corner of her eye, Steph saw Ranger pick up his phone and wander off to have a few private words with someone - Alex no doubt - before closing it and returning to the dining area.

"Right, that's the formal stuff done with. OK, Connor, time to talk turkey, what the fuck have you done to my company?" Steph heard as she quickly shut the door behind her.


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you so much for your wonderful reviews - RL isn't quite so frantic so I've been able to get this chapter out a lot faster than the last few. Hope you enjoy**

**R&R (please) it really does make it all so much more worthwhile!**

**;oP**

"Wow – a tournament!" Steph said as her and Chase waited for the elevator.

"Wow indeed!" came the bemused reply.

"Wonder what games we'll be playing? I wonder if there's a prize? What could it be…" Steph lapsed into silence, both of them thinking the same thing.

That this wasn't what they'd expected to hear when they'd entered the meeting room just now.

Independently, they'd both thought Ranger was going to expose Connor for the lying, cheating scumbag that he had become but instead he'd announced a Rangeman wide tournament. Talk about a distraction!

Steph had smiled inwardly when she realised that Batman had not explained the schedule nor contents of events for this morning when they'd discussed things yesterday but she had been grateful for his sensitive handling of Connor's embezzling.

"That's what makes him a great leader" a dreamy voice in her head said.

"Yeah, shame he didn't think like a leader all those months ago…" a snippy but much sadder voice added.

"So… you and Manoso…?" Chase asked quietly, pulling Steph from her thoughts.

"I, er… don't know what you mean…" she replied, dropping her eyes to the floor as she blushed, clearly surprised that he'd figured it out.

At that moment the elevator arrived and Steph quickly stepped in, hoping that Chase would not press her any further for the juicy gossip. She was wrong.

"Come on Sweetie. I can see how he looks at you and you… well you just, you know…well you somehow look stronger, more complete …" Chase stuttered out as he followed her into the steel box. Fuck, why was this so awkward, he thought? Because you _like_ her, moron! Came the internal reply.

Steph smiled carefully "that obvious huh?" she suddenly wondered whether Chase had the beginnings of feelings for her.

" 'Fraid so."

"Well, Ranger and I… let's just say it's taken us a while to sort out our own stupidity…" she said softly all the while fiddling with the bottom button of her shirt.

She looked up to gauge his reaction to her confession.

Chase smiled but Steph swore she saw a look of resignation in the man's eyes. She'd been right.

"Chase, I hope this doesn't change our friendship." She added, softly. "I wasn't ever really over him and it's not like I haven't had plenty of time to try." she added, reaching forward to run a hand down the outside of his clothed arm.

"I know that now."

"For what it's worth I'm sorry."

"What on earth for?" he snorted out in surprise.

"Well, for stunning you at the very least!" she giggled, grinning and slapping him on the arm playfully.

"I'll get even, Plum…" he grinned back.

Internally Steph did a happy dance, she'd avoided the elephant that was literally standing next to her and the embryonic friendship she'd just started to build with Chase had survived its first glitch.

Friendships were important and she now considered the man standing by her side, both literally and figuratively, to be a friend.

At that moment the car stopped at three.

"I think I need to run for a while" Chase explained as he stepped out. "I need to process this morning's events so far."

Steph nodded in total agreement. She too had a huge amount on her mind and needed some down time to sort it into order before her up and coming talk with the man in black. "Mind if I join you?" she asked, following him out into the hallway.

They quickly entered the gym but headed off in different directions to get changed. Steph had chuckled at the irony the first time she'd realised that the one office where the idea of a woman co-worker was an anathema was the only one with a female changing room. But now she just wandered off to her locker and got out a white sports bra, fitted bright blue t-shirt, shorts and her trainers and trainer socks.

More appropriately kitted out, she stepped back into the gym where Chase was stretching prior to beginning his exercise.

How easy it would have been to add Chase to her list of lovers she thought as she looked at his muscles flexing beneath the soft grey wife beater he now wore. The shorts he was wearing highlighted his firm ass and showcased his thighs. He looked up, smiled then wiggled his ass at her as he'd obviously caught her staring.

She blushed before giggling "What? Just because I'm on a diet doesn't mean I can't look at the menu!" then leant against the wall to begin stretching her hamstrings.

A loud, deep laugh was her only reply.

o0o0o0o0o

Chase and Steph were deep into their routines when the door of the gym was flung open and an angry Ranger was followed by a very sullen looking Connor. Well, Ranger's jaw muscle was being worked – that was good enough for Steph. She continued her assent up some random Stairmaster mountain and continued to watch the scene unfolding before her.

The two men began stripping off their outward accoutrements and once they were bare foot and clad only in cargo pants, they moved to the mats and began to warm up.

Steph caught Chase's eye and silently they both agreed. Neither would get involved nor raise an alarm unless someone looked likely to inflict permanent damage on their opponent. Neither was stupid enough to think that Connor stood a real chance.

Ranger said something and Connor nodded in reply then they both started to circle.

o0o0o0o0o

Rees put the phone down and smiled.

He and Vera had slept in, late.

Very late.

After all, they had been out celebrating and had taken today off to recover. He got up carefully so as not to disturb the woman at his side and smiled down at her sleeping form. Not only had they been out with the guys so that they could share their news, but Rees had then spent the rest of the night lovingly affirming his feelings for his now fiancée. Fiancée! Wow, that felt good…

He slipped into the kitchenette and put the coffee machine on then went routing round in the freezer compartment.

Lester had made him chuckle and breathe a sigh of relief at the same time. He needed to share the good news with Vera, but as she'd slept through the phone's ring tone, he figured she'd be out for a little while longer at least.

And when she woke up, he figured, they'd celebrate some more. Especially now that it looked like there were two great reasons to do so:

Firstly, Rees himself was now officially off the market and forever bound to the most wonderful woman in the world. He smiled as he realised that things would never had worked out between him and Steph, but that if it hadn't been for her he and Vera would never have met.

Secondly, Steph was finally back in a relationship with Ranger, where she belonged and after all the shit she'd been through, she deserved some happy. That was the official summing up, well at least according to the biggest gossip of them all, Lester Xavier Fernando Santos.

As he reached further back into the freezer compartment he started to feel light as a feather touches tracing down his spine heading southwards. He groaned slightly at the sensation the fingers created.

"If you want more you'd better be looking for ice cream" a soft voice purred in his ear.

Grinning he turned and looked over his shoulder "look what I've just found, chunky monkey…"

o0o0o0o0o

"Do we stop them yet?" Steph asked worriedly, fiddling with her fob for the building as she viewed the mullering Connor was getting. He'd just gone down on one knee for the fifth time and Ranger showed no sign of stopping. He was bouncing on his toes, albeit not as lightly as ten minutes earlier, goading his opponent on.

"Come on you sissy! Get up! Looks like you should have been practising your moves on the mats rather than at the crap tables…"

Connor looked up, one hand braced on the opposite knee to try and steady himself, his body covered in a thin layer of sweat, his breath coming in hard pants.

"Fuck you, Manoso, always so fucking sure of yourself!" Letting out a roar he rushed at Ranger's knees.

A lesser man might have been taken by surprise but Ranger danced away, too fast for his adversary.

"Man up and face the consequences of your actions, you fucker!" Ranger taunted. "_Megan_ ordered you to move on, deal with the grief then grasp life and live it to the max, but what did you do? You went and died with her! Where is my brother? What the fuck did you do with him? He needs to come back to me so that I can help him." He growled out, circling Connor who was back on his feet.

"You have no idea what you're talking about! SHE WAS MY EVERYTHING!" Connor screamed.

Ranger took that moment to bring Connor down. In one smooth stroke he planted him on the mats and ground his face into the padded covering. Twisting one arm up behind his back whilst straddling his ass and thighs and pinning him down he muttered something so quiet that only Connor heard him.

Then the dam burst and Connor started to sob. Not in the way he had with Steph, this was different. The sobs were filled with anger, confusion, sorrow, love, broken dreams and guilt. So. much. guilt.

"How will I live without her, Carlos?" A small, little boy lost voice vented.

Ranger leant forward, almost stroking Connor's hair and began to soothe the man crying beneath him. He moved off and slid down to his side. Lifting his head to where Steph and Chase were standing, jaws slackened in disbelief at what they'd just witnessed, he gave Steph a look and even from across the room, for the first time she totally understood what he wasn't saying.

Nodding her understanding she grabbed Chase's arm and dragged him out of the gym, pressing her key fob to disable the cameras and lock the room behind her as they left.

o0o0o0o0o

Once they were showered and dressed, Steph and Chase met up in Connor's office where Chase logged on and found an email from Tank to call him as soon as he could.

Lifting the desk phone, Chase dialled Ranger's second in command and sat down behind his new desk.

"Yo"

"You wanted to speak to me?"

"Yeah. Did Ranger kill Connor?"

"Nearly. Is that… normal?"

"Depends on the cause, but he usually makes his point loud and clear."

"Wow… Sorry, bit of a shock… erm… sorry…" Chase was waffling and he knew it.

"S'ok, Chase." Steph said, stroking his arm to reassure him before leaning past him and pressing the speaker button. "Hi Tank."

"Hi Bomber. You back with the boss then?"

Steph could hear a smirk in his voice. "Yeah… I know, 'bout time too…" she replied, going all girly.

"Fuckin' A!" came the big man's reponse.

"Tank…" Steph said, suddenly sobering up as realisation hit. "Who told you?"

Tank coughed "Er, let's just say, I heard a little something when you picked him up from the airport…"

"Taaaank! Where's the bug!" she huffed petulantly.

Before she could get the information out of him Chase broke into the conversation. "Hello? Anyone listening?"

Two "sorry's" and "be afraid, Tank, be very afraid…" were muttered out resentfully.

"OK, so where do we go from here? As I see it, Ranger and Connor are out of action. Mungo probably wonders why I'm sitting in this chair and not him and I need to know the official line to give the guys on what's been happening since The Boss Man landed this morning."

"Easy tiger! Calm down! Steph, I thought you said he was good to go!" Tank said good naturedly.

"Cut the crap, Big Man…" Steph growled, putting her hands on her hips.

Tank guffawed but calmed down almost immediately. "Chase, I've drafted a memo to go out to all Rangeman staff, but before that can happen, Ranger wants you to read out a statement to all the personnel currently on duty in your building. I'm sending it over now. You can make slight changes if the wording isn't comfortable for you, but the bits in bold are not to be altered in any way."

Chase breathed a mental sigh of relief. He'd had visions of fucking up his first assignment as the man at the top but realised he should have known better. Ranger Manoso had not been the youngest man to ever get to the rank he reached before he retired from active service without being a brilliant strategist. This man had his back and he didn't even really know him. Hats off to you, man. Hats off.

At that moment the computer in front of him alerted him to new incoming messages and when he clicked on the screen to get past the screen saver, he could see there were three.

"Take your time reading each and every one of them, Chase The first two are to do with Connor but the last one is just for you – it's your new contract. You're going into the lion's den and you need to have your wits about you. I have a feeling that Mungo won't be the only one after your job…"

"Noted, Tank. Oh and Tank…"

"?"

"Thanks, man."

"Yeah, yeah." Tank replied wearily before hanging up.

Lester looked at the large black man that sat at his side. "I think Ranger has made the right choice by opting to stay down there until after the tournament. D'ya think he's told Beautiful yet?"

"Knowing him probably not, but I hope he's gonna be honest and not fuck it all up this time."

"Only time will tell and all that crap…"

"Yeah." Tank replied. He was sick of Ranger being an asshole when it came to Steph and he hoped that this morning's display of affections at the airport were only the start of better things to come.

He was tired, tired of putting up with the childish, petulant behaviour of a grown man who needed to grow some and get it on with the woman who held his heart.


	15. Chapter 15

**Hi guys thanks so much for your feedback! But please keep your comments coming, it's the only payment writers in the Fanfic universe get and it really makes us feel warm and fuzzy…**

**I'm going to try and post at least once a week until this story is finished, but in the run up to the end of the school term (some of my schools finish in just over a week and I'm up to my eyeballs in reports, badges, 'Olympic' swimming galas and assessments etc) things have been hectic so please bear with me!**

**Oh, and this chapter is for highlands girl…**

**;oP**

As Steph left Chase's office she could sense a tense undercurrent of emotion in the air so quickly made a note of the events that would take place in the tournament then scuttled off to hide in a cubicle she'd spied a couple of days earlier. No-one seemed to be using it and it seemed a good place to hide out as it was in the far corner of the floor. An ancient and dust-laden computer stood on the corner of the desk and she hoped there was some stationery in the drawers. Sitting down on the four legged, plastic chair, she was pleased to find a few sheets of blank paper, a couple of chewed pens and a slightly blunt pencil.

As she began to set up shop she momentarily wondered where Ranger and Connor were then dismissed her thoughts as unnecessary. Carlos could be counted on to take care of things so she knew she need not worry.

Where to start, she pondered. Where indeed. She looked at the list of games, 12 in total, that Ranger had pinned to the wall but was at a loss as to who should be assigned to which event. After all, she'd not really been introduced to the team in Atlanta so had little or no idea of the men's strengths and weaknesses.

Deciding she was not going to get anywhere in the short term, she decided to grab a cup of coffee then make a couple of calls. Perhaps her colleagues in the other offices would have a better idea of the people around her. She thought about calling Lester, but knew he would massage or even bend the truth – he was highly competitive after all and they were always playing tricks on each other. Chances are he'd stitch her up good and proper. No, he was not an option.

Tank? Rees? Vera? Ace, even?

Chewing the already chewed pen she held in her hand, she wandered into the break room and grabbed a cup from the cupboard.

o0o0o0o0o

Connor stood in his shower, letting the water wash the tears and emotions from earlier down the drain. The heated water did nothing to clear his head, but the soreness in his body did.

Ranger may be a fucking machine, but even he knew the best way to make a point. Several points actually.

As he scrubbed the sweat and angst from his body he thought about what exactly Ranger had said and done this morning.

_Flashback_

"_Right, that's the formal stuff done with. OK, Connor, time to talk turkey, what the fuck have you done to my company?" _

_Connor took a deep breath. He knew this moment had been coming for some time but as ever, denial land had been a warm and safe haven but even as he passed through passport control, he'd known it would provide only a temporary refuge. Right now though he knew he was on a fast track outta there and probably with little or no chance of ever being allowed back in._

"_Ok, I admit it, I fucked up." He started, trying to sound as if he really didn't care, when in fact he did._

_Very much._

_Ranger looked at him and sighed. _

_If Connor hadn't seen it himself he would never have believed it, Ranger sighed! What was the world coming to? First he was in LURVE and now he was… sighing? WTF?_

"_Connor when you've finished your internal monologue, care to share?" Ranger said, breaking into his mental meanderings._

_Connor took a loud and nervous gulp. "to be brutally honest, I wasn't thinking about the long term, all I could think was that I needed was a distraction, something else to focus on. I didn't stop to think about how I was changing one crutch for another. I miss her man, I miss them all… so. Fucking. Much."_

_Ranger nodded in understanding "Go on" he said calmly._

"_Then the money I'd been bequeathed was all gone, but the gambling helped or so I thought so I thought what the hell. It allowed me to disappear into another world for a while and to forget reality. I entered a world of carefree sex and pretend power. I… I just got carried away."_

"_Yeah and with Rangeman funds. Connor, you were playing with money that you had no right to. That you could never hope to pay back. Did none of that count? For Chrissakes, you helped build up part of the empire that exists today. And you were prepared to knock it all down just because you couldn't face up to your feelings like a man?"_

_Even as he said it, Ranger realised that although he hadn't done the monetary damage that Connor had, he too was guilty of the same emotional cowardice._

_Connor just stood there, unable to say any more._

"_If things hadn't been forced out into the open, when were you going to come clean or were you planning on hoping that no-one would find out?"_

_Connor hung his head in shame, unable to reply._

"_What have you got to say for yourself?"_

_Silence…_

"_You're fucking pathetic!" Ranger said as he turned away. "Mats, now. If you can't apologise then at least I can vent my anger at your betrayal." He sneered out as he turned and left the apartment, Connor reluctantly just behind him._

_End flashback_

Connor let the last of the really hot water work its magic on his aching body then turned it to cold so that he could focus his thoughts.

How the fuck was he going to make it up to Ranger? He had no idea. He knew he couldn't come up with the money to repay his former…

He stopped in his mental tracks.

He knew he could never hope to generate the cash he'd stolen, not unless he got lucky on the cards and he had a sneaking suspicion that if he went within 100yards of a casino he'd be packed up and dispatched to a third world country. Before he took another step.

No, what he could do to repay his debt was to become the man he used to be. The man that laughed with his friends, loved with his heart and helped build Rangeman Atlanta into what it once was, with all that it stood for.

Stepping out of the shower and dressing quickly he headed down to 5. He would work closely with Stephanie and make sure that Atlanta not only did its best in the up and coming tournament, but that it showed the rest of the offices what it was really capable of and win the trophy.

As he ran down the stairs he laughed. Carlos had never mentioned what the prize was to be.

Clever bastard had everyone salivating about the tournament but without ever mentioning what the winners would get. For all he knew it could be a packet of condoms and a 4-pack of beer.

First things first though, he had a meeting with Chase and Ranger to discuss how things were going to be run from now on.

He had a sneaking suspicion that things might, just might, turn out OK and that maybe, just maybe Megan was smiling down on him after all.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph leant back and thought about the information Rees and Ace had given her. None of it was of much use. She sighed and rolled here eyes with frustration.

Tank had told her in no uncertain terms that he couldn't and wouldn't give her any insight to the men that worked out of Atlanta. He argued that it wouldn't be fair to help one office and not another.

She pointed out that all the other offices' top personnel had far more intimate knowledge of the guys in their teams, hell they'd probably served in the back of beyond with half of them.

Tank conceded to that point but still wouldn't budge but in any event, she got the feeling that even if he spilled the beans it wouldn't take more than a couple of minutes to tell her everything he knew.

She was getting nowhere slowly. Time to put plan B into action.

Firing up the search engines she quickly ran top level searches on all the men currently on the payroll. She couldn't use any of the internal personnel files but she could easily get the basics on most of the men around her.

If they were to have any chance of making the grade she had to do something. She knew Connor would most likely be useless. Even if he cared to share with her what would be the point? He was out of there in two weeks so what would it matter to him whether Atlanta sunk or swum?

No, as usual, Stephanie Michelle Plum was on her own.

Mentally rolling up her sleeves, she set about studying the information that the search engines were spitting out.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger finished up the conversation he'd been having with Tank on his phone from the penthouse apartment.

Well, ok. Between them they'd strung maybe 100 words but they'd understood each other perfectly and now Tank was fully appraised of the current situation.

Earlier, Ranger'd escorted Connor to his apartment on 6 and sat with him until he felt sure he was OK before heading up to his own place for a shower.

He grinned to himself as he stepped into the shower and noticed her shampoo. Things were on the up.

There were glimmers of the old Connor, hiding inside the fucked up excuse for a human being that he'd taken to the mats earlier so he knew there was hope for him. Given time he knew Steph would start the process, but Bobby would help him to face his demons and get him back on track. True, he would not be able to work for Rangeman in his current capacity again, but he'd think of something. He always did.

On top of that, although he was really pissed with himself that his stupidity had caused Steph so much pain, she'd had to spread her wings and fly solo and by Christ had she risen to the challenge! She was making him so proud with her ideas and follow up actions.

His heart and perhaps a certain other part of his anatomy swelled as he thought about how much she'd grown while they'd been apart yet all the while she was still the woman she'd always been. Full of life and energy and feisty as hell but more than that. Stronger, more determined and much more capable of going after what she wanted.

And what she wanted, it would appear, was him.

Rees was out of the picture, for good he hoped. He had no idea what had gone on there, but if the man had hurt her… he snorted at his own stupidity. He was the only one that had really hurt her, but yet _she_ was still _his_!

He said a small prayer to the man upstairs thanking him for giving him a second chance. One he intended to make good use of and this time he, promised, he was not letting her go.

Now that they were talking again he was determined they would both be truly honest with their feelings. He was going to tell her how incomplete his life had been without her in it. He would probably confess to trying to put her out of his mind by using other women. Scratch that, he thought. Might be a bridge too far… Nope, he was going to make sure she knew how much he loved her and that if needs be, he'd spend eternity making things good between them both.

This sounded like a better plan and his heart and his hormones did a little happy dance as he stifled a grin.

He snorted as he realised what he'd just done. He was glad that his Babe couldn't see him right now, she be laughing her head off. How the mighty Batman has fallen to the world of men!

He finished his ablutions, dried off and quickly dressed in his uniform of black on badass black.

Once he'd added his various weapons he headed down to 5 for a meeting with Connor and Chase to discuss the handing over of the running of Atlanta from one man to the other. He was hoping to make the promotion a permanent one, after all, he'd been watching the man for a while and, combined with the information Babe had given him, felt he was up to the job he was being asked to caretake.

Yeah, things were definitely on the up.

**So, waddya think? good or bad? Just let me know.**

**I promise that the next chapter is the one you've all been waiting for...**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hi guys, hopfeully this chapter will give you lots of answers you've been waiting so patiently for.**

**Steph and Ranger may, ahem, do a few rude things so if you don't like reading that sort of thing, then stop reading now... for the rest of you, sorry it's all glossed over a bit!**

**I love your comments and judging by the length of some of your reviews you are really into this story so please continue to R & R (you know the drill). For those who read but usually leave me nothing, go on, please make my day and give me your feedback ;oP**

**Enjoy...**

Steph worked steadily through the headings on the list Ranger had pinned up and cross referenced this against the searches she had run. She listed the names of the men who seemed to have the skills necessary against each task and it wasn't long before she realised that there were several events where she had plenty of candidates but there were a few where only a woman's touch would do. In these cases she'd been hard pressed to come up with one man who she thought had the skill set needed to perform the task in question so she just stabbed at the list in front of her with her pen and used the name nearest to it that hadn't already been picked.

Clever bastard, she thought as she looked at the list again. As she'd carried out her paper based exercise it had become clear that she would be key to the success of several of the events. Ranger really was the master of manipulation. She just hoped his machinations didn't extend to her as well. She dismissed the negative thought – no - he'd told her this morning that things were different.

That _they_ would be different.

That _he'd_ missed _her_…

Concentrate, Plum! Return to the task in hand. Which was… oh yeah, the twelve tasks of Hercules – ha ha!

Con. sen. trate…

Ahem... where was I?

Calm down...

Deep breaths...

...

Most of the men were more than capable in a car. Practically all of them would be fine on the firing range, but seeking out a skip in a tightly knit closed community or body guarding a young child, not so much.

Now as she looked at the list again she started to giggle.

Clever bastard-s actually.

She could see where Tank and Ranger had given their input but she now had a sneaking suspicion that a certain playboy and a medic might also have been involved. Looking closely she also thought that perhaps a certain ex-gang member might even have had some influence.

A warm and fuzzy feeling welled up inside her. Not only did she seem to have the backing of her favourite superhero but perhaps a few other great friends had also been keen to see her succeed. But why the female orientated tasks? After all, she really didn't see them thinking their way round the edges of the box in this way, then it hit her. Ella!

God Bless Ella!

Leaning back in her chair, she grinned. Ella had probably been the underlying strategist for the whole tournament! Now at least she had someone she could ring who might be able to give her a better understanding of how to capitalise on her own skills too.

Picking up the phone she quickly dialled Haywood reception and was put through almost immediately

"Hello Dear, I wondered when you'd ring but before you ask, I'm not going to talk about the tournament…"

o0o0o0o0o

Connor, Ranger and Chase sat round the table in the small conference room, discussing how to tell the men about the leadership changes that were about to be made public.

"I'm not sure how well some of the men will take it." Chase said "After all, most of them thought Mungo would be the next to take on the mantle if things ever changed at the top."

"I agree" Connor added. "I'm afraid most of the personnel here like the way I've er... 'encouraged' them to terrorise the locals. I'm ashamed to say that I think I've bred a monster. Or even a series of them. I don't think they'll take too kindly to any of the changes that Chase makes."

Ranger just looked at them as if they had three heads. "Do you really think they're that stupid? You know as well as I do that a lot of these men would be deemed unemployable by most companies. They need to treat the next few weeks as a training exercise. One that requires all the usual hardships that go with basic. They can either shit or get off the pot, I don't care which but I reckon we'll lose maybe 10 percent but they will be the ones who are too stupid or too short sighted to see that it's in their best interest to change."

He leaned back in his seat. "Quite frankly, I don't give a fuck about the ones we lose. But we need it to be their choice. I don't want any of them taking out some sort of vendetta against us. Atlanta needs to rebuild its reputation and it needs to be one based on loyalty and quality, nothing else will be acceptable."

Chase nodded and sucked in some air.

"Problem with that?" Ranger asked, cocking his head slightly.

"No, not really, but I think I may need a miracle in order to see this through."

"I've already given you two."

Chase looked confused.

"Stephanie Plum and a tournament. Both of which are capable to bringing the best out in people. Forgiveness and trust in the first and team building and bonding in the second. If you use these wisely I think you've got a good chance this will all work out."

Connor chuckled "You really are a clever fucker, Carlos! Why the hell didn't I ever think to trust you with my troubles."

"Because you're a total moron." Ranger said, looking pointedly at him.

Chase looked at the unspoken conversation that was taking place could see some of the supposed 'Connor of old' sneaking through. He didn't know Ranger at all and the things he'd over heard had done little to dismiss the nerves he'd had when they first met. But right now he could see a brilliant mind, a brilliant man and every physical reason why Steph was drawn to him.

He was the ultimate predator. In the field, the boardroom and obviously the bedroom. Mentally he sighed. Now if only he could feel less regret for losing his Sweetie before he'd even made her his.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph looked at her list again and nibbled on her bottom lip thoughtfully. She was certain that she was finally on the right track. She had people posted against each of the tasks but was still nervous about how things would work out. She figured that as Ranger hadn't even told anyone what the prize would be, he probably had some tricks up his sleeve and that things weren't as they seemed. Each task seemed too straightforward so there were bound to be surprises along the way.

Perhaps she could wiggle some secrets out of him – perhaps post-coitally… Ha ha probably not even then, she reasoned after all he was always aware of his surroundings. And, let's be honest, much as she hoped it wouldn't be too long before she could give up her shower massager, she couldn't assume anything right now.

Nope, she'd just have to hope she got everything right.

She looked down the list again, cross referencing everything against the search information one more time.

1 Shooting contest: Tibs

2 Driving skills: Ian

3 Suspect surveillance: Frank / Ralph

4 Skip apprehension (close knit community): Steph / Mitch

5 Skip apprehension (crowded environment): Steph / various

6 Body guarding for a young child: Steph / Various

7 Body guarding for a local celebrity: Chase / Jed

8 Planting evidence: Pike

9 Assault course and march: Mungo

10 Bomb disposal: Robo / Al

11 Building refurbishment: Steph / Chase / Various

12 Logistics:

Steph looked at the last task – what on earth was logistics?

She had eight men left over but hopefully she could use them for the last task or find another way to incorporate them into the tournament, probably during 5, 6 or 11...

If only she had someone else to bounce ideas off, it was a real shame that Connor was so unlikely to help. He would probably know the best way to play things.

She looked at her watch and was surprised to find it was after 4. Where had the time gone? She looked up and could see the tops of Connor and Ranger's heads coming out of the conference room that they'd spent most of the day locked up in.

Connor headed off towards the stairs and Ranger in a different direction. She knew he wouldn't be able to see her so assumed he was going towards the break room so returned to the papers on her desk once more.

"Babe" a soft voice, full of promise whispered in her ear as two mocha latte arms wrapped round her from behind and squeezed her against a wall of hard muscle.

"Be ready at 6.30" the voice said "We're going out on a date."

Before Steph could get over the shock he was gone. Turning round she was met with an empty space.

Yep, it was official. Ranger was smoke.

Picking up her paperwork and tidying it up into a neat pile she wandered over to Chase's new office.

"Any chance you could look through this lot?" she asked as she dumped everything before Chase.

"Better still, Connor will take a look." Came the amused reply.

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. I'll pass it to him, he's keen to start making amends."

Steph looked blankly at him for a moment.

"Don't you have something to go get ready for?"

"Uh? Yeah… YEAH!" Steph said as she realised that Chase must know about her date with Ranger. Turning on her heels she started out of the door.

Things were really on the up!

o0o0o0o0o

Steph stood in the shower thinking over the things that had happened since picking up Ranger from the airport this morning.

She was now officially going on a date.

Connor was going to help her with the tournament…

She was. Going. on a date…

With Batman…

Crap! She flustered out, swallowing a load of water and spluttering in surprise. She had nothing to wear. Most of her clothes were damaged in the flooding of Chez Alcatraz…

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger grinned to himself as he stood outside the door to his apartment and mentally straightened his tie before knocking.

Moments later the door was opened and Steph stood before him. Dios she looked fucking fantastic in the deep olive green short flirty floral dress he'd organised that stopped mid thigh and went very well with the knee high black leather boots and thick tights Ella had also provided. Not only that but she looked totally edible, kissable, beautiful, nervous, beautiful, nervous… hadn't he just said that?

"Ranger, are you coming in?" Steph asked timidly as she looked at the delectable man dressed in black fitted jeans, lightweight dark cream jumper with the hint of a white t-shirt underneath and a dark gray scarf wrapped artfully round his neck. Christ he looked amazing! GQ man meets Jude Law. Not only that but she wanted to kiss his beautiful lips… run her fingers through his hair… ride him like Zorro…

Ranger walked in, sliding carefully past her. If he so much as touched her they'd not be going out anywhere soon "Babe?" he asked as he looked at her glazed over eyes. Guess she was in the same predicament.

"Sorry! Just get my cardigan." She said, dashing off. Fuck me! She thought as the scent of Bulgari and Ranger filled her nostrils. He might look absolutely beautiful in what he was wearing but if her memory served her correct, what was underneath was even better.

"Let's get out of here." Ranger said snagging her hand once she'd returned to the narrow passageway.

As their fingers entwined, time stopped.

Steph looked down at where they were joined, suddenly wanting so much more. She looked up into his eyes and gulped, loudly.

Anticipation hung heavy in the air.

"Yeah… good idea" she said, stepping closer without thinking.

Suddenly their bodies were touching.

Every part screaming for more contact.

Ranger frantically shoved the door shut with his boot. It slammed with a loud deep thud but neither of them seemed to notice. The only thing they were focused on was getting each other naked.

Clothes flew, kisses exchanged, arms and legs wove together, bodies screamed in ecstasy and desperation.

Then they were one. Bodies slid together, moaning and grasping, breath quickening as they sped towards the finish line.

Some time later as they lay on the floor in a tangle of sweaty limbs, Steph turned and smiled as she snuggled into his solid chest. "Thanks for the clothes, I guess by your reaction they looked ok on me."

Ranger chucked as he tucked a stray curl behind her ear. "Something like that."

He kissed her nose gently. "Come on, I'm sure there's a bed in here somewhere. We have a lot of catching up to do" he whispered huskily as he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to his bedroom where they continued to 'catch up' for the rest of the night.


	17. Chapter 17

**Thanks for your wonderful reviews of my last chapter, though I think a few of you would have liked to have known what happened on the 'date that never happened'. Read on if you like smut, but this chapter is from the morning after.**

**Please R&R and make my day ;oP**

RPOV

0315 hours

I looked down on my Babe, snuggled against my chest and gently cradled in my left arm. Her curly hair falling about her face and shoulders a visual metaphor for the woman that was now my everything: sensual, wild, carefree and unique and for some reason, looking at her locks made my chest hurt.

As I wound my fingers gently through one strand I wondered at the stupidity of it all - why the fuck had it taken me so long to give in to my feelings?

What an utterly stupid waste of time!

Steph sighed and smiled slightly as she tried to burrow deeper into me then relaxed again as I tightened my hold, secure in the knowledge that I was here, still here.

Our initial coupling had been primal and desperate our passion scorching hot, but later, in the calm of the small hours of the night we had silently pledged ourselves to each other through thought and deed.

We made love and it was tender and beautiful.

Full of joy and wonder.

It was the most extraordinary and amazing thing I have ever done.

I can't believe what a difference 24 hours can make to a life.

As I give in to the warmth and happiness that engulfs me and drift off to sleep with my Babe in my arms, there is one thought that enters my head.

I am now complete.

o0o0o0o0o

"You'll never guess…"

Rees sighed and looked at the clock on his nightstand. It was 5.05 and he should have been asleep for another… 25 minutes. "This had better be good, Santos…" he growled out, rubbing his hand across his face in an attempt to focus his mind.

"Steph never made it out to dinner last night…" Lester said, practically bouncing down the phone.

"So?"

"Nor did her dinner date…"

"so? Look I have better things to do than be woken…

"It was Ranger…"

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

"Really! He'd better not hurt her… I know what you heard at the airport – how did you listen in, by the way…"

"Trade secret."

"Yeah right! Where was I? If he so much as breaks her finger nail I'll kill him."

"Join the queue." Les said blandly.

"So, I know you're dying to tell me…" Rees sighed, he knew he would not be going back to sleep "...I'm all ears."

o0o0o0o0o

Steph woke to an empty bed and looked over at the spot where Ranger should have been. Quickly running her hand over the sheets she found they were almost cold so got up to investigate. She hoped he was picking up the clothes they'd ripped off each other last night, rather than saddling up to leave town. She blushed at the image of how quickly they'd stripped and scattered what they'd been wearing as they raced to get each other naked…

Donning a white dress shirt from the closet that drowned her body and fell to half way down her thighs, she wandered tentatively out into the lounge, buttoning up the front as she went.

Empty.

Next she wandered into the hallway.

That too was uninhabited.

Her heart sank slightly at the void that filled the room.

Turning, she walked into the kitchen where coffee was brewing in the state of the art coffee machine that was far too complicated, needing a degree in applied mechanics to operate. By the looks of the jug, it was nearly ready.

As she stood contemplating what to do next, there was nowhere else Ranger could have been, naked arms circled her waist and pulled her against a hard and equally bare chest. Lips caressed her ear "need to be aware…"

She turned in his arms and pretended to hit him when in fact she was just relieved he was still there.

"Babe, you OK?" Ranger asked as he kissed her nose, holding her face between his large caramel hands.

"Being a bit silly." She confessed, blushing slightly.

"Babe."

"Yeah, I realise now that you were deep in a cupboard somewhere, looking for your Bat tights." She said as she cupped his bare ass cheeks, knowing that the unsaid was far more important.

"No, the bathroom actually." He replied, his brows knitted in confusion until the penny dropped moments later. "Babe. I promise you, you'll be sick of me before I ever let you go again."

Steph nodded and looked up to see the sincerity in his face.

He kissed her nose again "Now, how about I show you how good you look in my shirt, hmm? He said as he picked her up and took her back to the bedroom, pulling the garment up and off her body before tossing it over his shoulder as he gently placed her back on the bed.

Leaning over her he slowly peppered her face with lingering butterfly kisses. "Babe, I am never leaving you again. I can't believe how whole I feel with you in my life, my bed, my arms."

Steph nodded before pushing against his chest to move him onto his back. He rolled slowly, a big grin seeping out from the corners of his mouth.

"Babe…" he said, his eyes smouldering and his eyebrow raising "I love a woman who likes to be in charge." He added as he tried to grasp her hips.

"Hold that thought, Big Boy." She said as she jumped off the bed. "Nature calls, but I'll be back before you know it."

Ranger shut his eyes and grinned. Dios! This woman was going to be the death of him. What a way to go!

"Keep your eyes closed and don't move" Steph said gently but with a slight commanding tone to her voice when she returned. "Hmmm, someone likes that, don't they?" she crooned as his erection bobbed up and down in response and he licked his lips.

"Do you trust me?" She asked as she climbed up onto the bed beside him.

"With all my heart and soul." He whispered back.

"Good." She replied as cold metal circled one of his wrists and shut with a click. She gave his open palm a quick kiss before repeating the exercise with the other one then pushing his arms over his head. She placed a pillow on top for good measure.

"Don't move" she instructed.

"Playing with fire, Babe." Ranger said huskily as his eyes, laced with desire, shot open and stared into her face. He licked his lips in anticipation of what was to come and swallowed hard.

"It'll be ok, Carlos." She replied as she stroked down the edge of his face with one hand then straddled his chest. "Now, how about we put that tongue to a better use. Hmmm?" she said lazily as she moved up and positioned her knees on either side of his shoulders. "Remind me how talented you are." She said as she grabbed hold of the headboard then slowly started to lower herself onto his face.

"Dios!" he growled out as he took a deep breath of her scent. "Fucking delicious." He added as he swiped his tongue over her moist lips.

Lowering herself further so that he better access she rolled her hips slightly. Ranger growled and sucked her clit into his mouth.

The sensation sent bolts of electricity out across her body, slamming into all four corners and almost immediately Steph felt a familiar burn deep inside her pelvis. "Oh my god!" Steph hissed out as she pushed herself further onto Ranger's talented mouth. She began to twist one of her nipples as she watched the beautiful man underneath her sucking and pillaging at her now dripping core.

Ranger growled as he felt her begin to press down even further on his face "Oh, yeah! Just there! Oooooh…" Steph groaned out as her body tensed. Suddenly waves of pleasure crashed through her, emanating from between her legs. Ranger kept nibbling and sucking as the effects of the orgasm ebbed away making her feel boneless.

Looking down she could see the deep dark pools of desire that were Ranger's eyes staring back at her.

"See something you like?" she said, smiling as she raised herself up and off him. "Thank you." She added quitely as she lay down beside him and played with the light peppering of hair on his chest with her finger nails, leaving scorching lines of red hot desire in her wake before casually tracing across his torso and down towards his happy trail.

"?"

"Thank you for giving me your trust." She said as her head followed her fingers, which now teasingly caressed southward.

Steph heard Ranger pull against the cuffs and groan out "Babe" as she took him her in mouth. "I'm not gonna... fuuuuck... slow down, Babe! I need to... uuugh."

As she looked back up at him her heart swelled. Not only had they spent the night confirming their feelings to each other, she now knew that this was it. He trusted her with his life, his safety, his ... everything.

They were, and always would be, together.

She flattened her tongue then slowly licked up his cock from the base to the top then nipped and sucked on his frenulum, Ranger jumped at the sensation, making her smile as she saw the concentration on his face. He licked his lips and arched his back as he gave in to the pleasure.

Pulling off him completely she watched his beautiful body straining to follow her. "nah ah ah…" she grinned as she looked up at her man. Staring intently into his eyes, she took one of his balls in her mouth and gently sucked.

"uuunnnggg." Ranger said, eloquently, his eyes mirroring her feelings.

A couple of minutes later she repeated the motion with the other one then began to lick and nibble her way back up his shaft again, massaging his sack all the while. When she reached his now purple, leaking tip she took just the head into her mouth, sucking the pre-cum from the slit before swirling her tongue round the underneath of it eliciting yet more incomprehensible noises.

Pulling back she whispered "give in, Ranger, let me make you feel good, trust me" before taking him deep into her mouth and grasping the base of his cock to milk him.

"Baaaaabe." He moaned out huskily as his cock expanded momentarily then began to squirt his seed into her mouth. She sucked and swallowed wantonly as he rode out his orgasm. When his breath slowed down and he began to melt into the bed she pulled off him and kissed her way back up his body.

"Wow." He breathed out as he brought his arms round her shoulders to bring her in close.

She looked up at him and smiled. "How long?" She asked as he looked up at the hand cuffs that were abandoned by the pillow above his head.

"Babe."

Smiling they snuggled for a while longer, silently relishing the feeling of being thoroughly loved. Knowing that real life would come back and take over soon enough.

"So..." Steph said, finally breaking the silence. "Our date..."

"How about we try again for tonight?" Ranger said, turning his head to stare into her eyes.

"Sounds good to me." she replied, sitting up slightly and resting on one of her elbows as she drew lines on his chest with the fingers of her other hand. "Oh, but this time Ranger..."

"Hmmmm?"

"Let's meet in the parking lot, ok?"

Ranger barked out a laugh before pulling her in for a long lingering kiss.

**I knew I needed to deliver some smut at some point. Hope you enjoyed!**


	18. Chapter 18

Dear all

Really sorry for the delay in posting any new chapters but life's taken a very sad turn for the worst. A good friend committed suicide last week and one of my Mum and Dad's closest friends died suddenly from cancer – two weeks after diagnosis.

I will post again soon – just need to get my head round things so please bear with me

:o(


	19. Chapter 19

**Hi guys, finally got my head round life so I'm ready to start publishing the rest of Tired of Trying. I've just re-read the previous chapters and there are some terrible inconsistencies which I will sort out once I've finished this story!**

**Sorry it's taken me so long, but I do hope you think this chapter has been worth the wait...**

**Please read, enjoy and review so I know whether you're still with me!**

**xxx**

Crap! Crappity, crap, crap! Steph hissed out loudly as she bounced round the room trying to get her socks and shoes on.

"Babe." Ranger said as he stepped out of the bathroom and leant against the door jamb, watching Steph's manic drunken Tigger impression, a smile dancing across his face.

"Raaanger." She whined. "It's not funny! I'll be late and today of all days I really want to be on time!"

"Why exactly?" he asked as he grabbed her as she bounced past him. Holding her carefully, yet firmly, in his vice-like grip he started kissing her still bouncing hair.

"I want to be able to see the reaction of the other men when Chase explains what's going to happen so I can relay it back to him later if needed, and to do that I really need to get there early and get a good seat. Plus, my boss is a total badass who gets really freaked by lateness."

Steph could feel Ranger's smile in her hair. Then he took a deep breath before releasing her.

"OK. Good enough." He said as he stepped towards the closet. "See you in 5, I'll make sure someone saves a good spot for you." He added with a knowing grin as he shrucked a shirt on and started doing up the buttons.

"Thanks, Boss!" came the grinned yet frantic reply as Steph flew out the door.

o0o0o0o0o

The chairs had been rearranged in rows facing a blond wood lectern situated in isolated splendour at one end of Conference Room One. As with all the other Rangeman offices, it was the largest of the meeting rooms. Sterile, no nonsense with grey moulded plastic stacking chairs.

One by one, men began to slip in almost silently and settle themselves randomly then bit by bit the rows filled up. Despite the apparent lack of speech, noise rose like tendrils of smoke in the large space as all those now gathered speculated on the events that had happened in the last 24 hours.

Steph snuck in and was about to head to a seat she saw at the back when Chase grabbed her. "Sit." He commanded as he steered her into a small row of seats near the front against the wall and at 90 degrees to the others where he sat down, next to her.

From this alternative position Steph could see the faces of everyone in the room. Thank you Batman, she thought happily.

Connor stood at the front and patiently waited for silence and before too long they were rewarded. "Everyone here?" he asked.

A baritone rumble of confirmation filled the room. "Good." He said then nodded to the door. As if choreographed, Ranger chose that moment to walk in and move up to and behind the lectern.

"OK, men… and woman." Ranger started looking round the now quiet room, finally settling on Steph where he nodded almost imperceptibly. "Thank you for joining us at such short notice. I will hand over to Connor in a moment but would like it to be known that everything he is about to tell you has been discussed with me and the core team at HQ and fully meets our approval. Additionally, I will be working out of here on and off for the next month or so or on a local project and to help settle in the transition you are about to be made aware of." He nodded towards Connor then sat down on the vacant seat next to Steph.

Connor cleared his throat to get everyone's attention then placed a sheet of paper on the lectern then raised his head to his captive audience.

"Thank you Ranger." he began "Chase will now read a out a statement from our Head Office in Trenton. If you have any questions, please keep them until the end when both he and I will be more than happy to answer them as best we can."

He signalled to Chase and the two men swapped position so that Chase was now in front of the lectern and Connor was sitting to Steph's left.

Silence and anticipation filled the air.

"As a direct result of the Rangeman-wide competition that Ranger has initiated, Connor Deary has decided to step down from the day to day running of this office so that he can focus his efforts on ensuring Atlanta has the best chance of winning this contest. Following a successful bid for her expertise, Stephanie Plum will be staying on in Atlanta to assist him with planning a number of the more irregular tasks, using the skills she had intended to train this office on anyway. After that, Connor will be moving to Trenton to sort out some private matters at which point he may or may not decide to remain in the employ of Rangeman."

Rumbles of surprise drifted across the room but Chase ignored them and continued. "Therefore with immediate effect, it has been agreed that Chase McKendry will be Temporary Acting VP of Rangeman Atlanta so that Connor and Stephanie can start to work on hatching their battle plan. The upcoming competition is not to be seen as an excuse for a party or to be taken lightly and Rangeman expects full and active participation by all personnel in every office, hence Connor's insistence on changing focus. The stakes are high as the prize is $10,000 for each permanent staff member on the payroll of the winning team at the point of the winner being announced and a further $50,000 to be given to that office's nominated charity."

Steph looked round the room watching the reaction of the now excited crowd, her eyes settling on Mungo who wasn't reacting in the same way as everyone else. No surprises there, she thought.

Mungo sat, eyes hooded, arms folded across his chest, clearly unimpressed by what he was hearing.

"If anyone has a problem with the changes in personnel that have taken place, or wishes to volunteer in any capacity then please speak to either myself or Ranger after this meeting is over." Chase concluded, looking directly at Mungo as he folded his piece of paper as put it in his pocket as he slowly raised an eyebrow, offering a challenge. A muscle in Mungo's jaw twitched in response.

"Okay, so any questions so far before Connor and I go through the details…"

o0o0o0o0o

Connor sat silently in the smallest meeting room, looking thoughtfully through Steph's suggestions, flicking back and forth through a couple of pages as he cross referenced the men she'd recommended for each task. For her part, Steph sat across from him nervously playing with her fingers, which lay in her lap, as she waited for his feedback.

After what seemed like forever Connor closed his eyes and sighed as he put the sheets of paper down and pinched the bridge of his nose then opened them again and staring straight at her.

"I really have no excuses, have I?" he asked, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table.

Steph furrowed her brows in confusion, not expecting his comment "Well, err... to cross to the other side?" she replied, totally unsure of the question Connor was posing.

He gave her a wry grin at her obvious confusion. "This is really well thought out" he said by way of explanation, waving his hand over her work as he began to expand on his comment.

"You continue to surprise me with your intuition and reinforce without realising you're even doing it that I've been a completely short sighted and arrogant asshat!" He paused for a moment then snorted softly at his own understatement.

"And for that I am truly sorry." He said after a slight pause, having the guts to look a little embarrassed.

He glanced at the list again briefly then looked back at her with another big sigh and an almost smile. "I have been a total fuckwit, haven't I? I have allowed my escalating anger at the events of 911 to ride roughshod over good business sense and I have brought this office to its knees. It took you coming in here and grabbing us all by the balls for me to realise that we have been sitting in a pressure cooker of hate and anger - of _my_ making might I add - that's pretty much ready to explode. The negative impact it would have had on the company I helped to build…" he paused, taking a deep breath and running a hand through his hair as he thought of what could have happened.

"I can't wait to see if the training you were going to give us all will hold the magic key to this competition. Ranger was right, we really do need women at Rangeman. I'm beginning to think, perhaps, that you may even hold all the power!"

He paused to allow his words to sink in before continuing.

"Ok, down to business." He said, as he pushed the papers into the middle of the table.

"I think we need to evaluate each heading and not take any one of them at face value – Ranger's a clever bastard and I suspect he has planned a few surprises along the way so I think we need to read between the lines as much as we can and try and work out what else he may throw in before we make our final selection. But, Stephanie, you have really thought things through and done an excellent job so far. Considering you have no real understanding of the men that work here you have placed them pretty much as I would have at this point. I'm stunned, literally…"

He looked pointedly at her before continuing. "You have made me remember that a bit of calm and understanding can be far more powerful than muscle and testosterone. So thank you for…"

Connor seemed to be stuck, as if there were no words to describe what he was feeling so Steph butted in.

"Thank you too." She added, leaning forward and patting his forearm. "For realising that Atlanta can't go on as it has been. You have changed so much in the last week, I hardly recognise the man who tried to shove me back out the door as soon as I stepped off the plane on my first day here."

Connor smiled slightly. "Yeah, sorry about that, not my finest hour! Sadly though I think adrenalin is bringing out the gentleman in me and I'm not sure how long I'm going to be all 'cute and cuddly'" he said with a wry grin, putting air quotes round cute and cuddly.

"Megan would be kicking my butt if she could see what I have allowed myself to become" he added softly, almost to himself as he shook his head "but I know I have to face my demons so that I can move forward. I just hope I can do this."

Steph leaned forward and grabbed the fist he was unconsciously making on top of her pile of workings out, between her own two hands. Slowly and gently manipulating and spreading out his fingers to relax them.

"S'okay. Day by day, you'll get there. Stop beating yourself up about the past, you can't change it and it won't get you anywhere by dwelling on it. You need to move forward one step at a time. Today's a good day. Let's start with that, shall we?" She knew only too well that there were still going to be dark days ahead for him.

"Yeah, you're right." Connor replied softly before swallowing loudly. "Okay, lady. 'nuff of the sappy stuff, we have a contest to win!"

**o0o0o0o**

**Hope this chapter was worth the wait. More soon, I promise!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hi guys, glad to be back. **

**Thank you to all you wonderful people who reviewed my last chapter, you humbled me with your enthusiasm for reading more from me, so please find below my next submission...**

**Enjoy and let me know what you think... please.**

**o0o0o0o**

The door to Ranger's temporary office blasted open, slamming into the wall where it took out a few fragments of plaster which skittered noisily to the floor, and a furious Mungo stormed into the calm and quiet space.

"You Bastard!" he added as he threw the door shut behind him.

Ranger, who had been typing away on his laptop, leant back in his chair, slowly and carefully taking off the rimless compact glasses he'd been wearing, before deliberately placing them on the desk next to his keyboard. As he did so he looked the angry man before him up and down, his stony, blank face emphasising his displeasure at Mungo's outburst.

"How could you make Chase the Head Honcho when you knew you had an effective leader in me! I've kept you abreast of what's been going on in this office. How else would you know what Connor's been up to, huh? I think you know you owe me and this is how you repay me? Instead of manning up you sent that, that... piece of skirt down here to check on us all to verify my reports. To make sure we were all behaving like good little Rangemen. Did you think I wouldn't work out that she's been spying on us, huh? Has she been sleeping with Connor, Chase, hell, even Pike or Robo to get you dirt on the rest of us?" He spat out angrily.

"Sit down." Ranger said slowly and calmly. His voice icy cold.

Mungo looked slightly less confident but stayed on his feet.

"I said. Sit. Down." Ranger ground out slowly.

Mungo sat, like a petulant child who'd been sent to the principal's office but couldn't see that he'd done anything wrong.

"First off, Miss Plum is not a piece of skirt, as you so crassly put it, nor has she been spying on you all. I won't even dignify your allegations about her sleeping arrangements with a response... I have been monitoring this office for quite some time and have been fully aware of what Connor has been up to. I know about his sideline in intimidation and the way he's been running this office. I also know exactly how much he has embezzled from the company he helped form and I understand why. Do you?"

Mungo glared but with less intensity as his bravado started to slip. Ranger could see the hesitation.

"How would you feel if, let's say, your brother, Sam, was killed in a drink drive traffic accident?"

Mungo now looked totally confused, unsure of where Ranger was going with his question. "What the hell does this have to do with anything?" he ground out.

Ranger ignored him and continued. "I'm sure you'd go off the rails, huh?"

Mungo nodded, still completely unaware of the relevance of Ranger's apparently weird line of questioning. His eyes showed his confusion.

Ranger pressed on. "Ok, so you'd want to hurt those that ended Sam's life right?"

Mungo nodded again.

"You'd feel angry, inadequate too, I bet? What if it wasn't just one person that died? What if it was your whole immediate family, plus your pregnant fiancée, but instead of it being a stupid, avoidable accident, what if it had been deliberate? What if a flight they'd been on was turned into a weapon, designed to kill as many innocent people as possible. People who'd just gotten off the elevators to go to work in their tall, tall buildings…"

Realisation hit "9-11" Mungo said, slightly hoarsely as he struggled to swallow.

"Yeah, 9-11. Everyone that Connor loved died as a result of the hate filled actions of a bunch of lunatic terrorists."

Mungo's eyes widened in shock.

"Yeah, precisely. Let's just say that Connor's judgement has been a little _off_ since then..."

Ranger paused so that he could look at the huge man that nearly matched Tank for size, but who would never match him for loyalty or honesty.

"In answer to your question, the reason why you were not given this role is that you have _never_, in all the time you've worked here, stopped to question Connor's actions. Instead of coming to me and brown nosing in the hope that I would give you his job, you should have confronted him and asked him what the fuck he thought he was doing. I know that if my second in command thought I was doing something stupid he'd call me out on it, after all no one is infallible. You should know by now that there is no 'i' in team."

Bit by bit, Mungo's countenance changed from sullen to surprised to embarassed as the words Ranger spoke sunk in.

"You are ex-marine and yet you have not lived up to the motto of your own regiment. Your fellow comrades would be ashamed if they could see you now. Instead of supporting a leader who is obviously struggling with something, you chose to chip away at him and fuel his distructive behaviour. You have undermined his, albeit inappropriate, authority and encouraged belligerent behaviour in those around him, helping to turn the ship he is running into a sinking one. Why on earth should I chose you to replace him?! I suggest you have a long hard think about what I've said and come back to me to discuss your future at Rangeman and how you wish to proceed."

Mungo looked stunned as he considered what had been described and even he had to admit the picture that had been painted of his character was not a good one. He stood up as soon as he realised he was being dismissed, anxious to get out of the room, and headed to the door. He wanted to apologise but as he opened his mouth the words did not come out. He had no idea how to reply to the accusations that had rightly been lain at his feet so decided to keep walking.

"Oh, one more thing." Ranger added, making Mungo turn round in surprise. "You are a very capable and intelligent man and I anticipate great things from you during the competition. Will I be disappointed?"

"No Sir, no!" Mungo replied, snapping his hand to his head in salute and flexing his jaw muscles as he stood to attention.

Ranger nodded as he studied his face briefly. "Dismissed!" he said sharply.

Mungo turned and fled, relieved that he was not about to be deported to a third world country, after all he'd heard the rumours, right? As he walked away Ranger's words swirled round his head. What had he allowed himself to become?! He was no better than Connor, worse in fact as he had no excuse other than that he liked being in control, using strong arm tactics and because Connor seemed to relish in his bully-boy behaviour.

Spotting Connor and Stephanie huddled over several sheets of paper in one of the smaller, more comfortable meeting rooms he took a deep breath. Now was the time to start thinking like the marine he once was and it was never too soon to start apologising, he realised.

Both heads looked up in surprise as he tapped lightly on the slightly open door and headed in. "Need a third pair of eyes?" he asked carefully.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph looked over the table in the small, intimate restaurant she now found herself in at the beautiful man that was currently studying his menu. Resting her chin on her open palm she took in the relaxed, gentle vibes he was giving off.

"I don't know what you said." She started, causing Ranger to look up in confusion "But for some reason Mungo has been all sweetness and light this afternoon and has deferred to both Connor and me at every opportunity."

"Babe." Ranger replied, a slight smile playing at his lips.

"Don't Babe me!" she replied sassily before smirking at him then darting her amused eyes back to her menu.

"It's all your doing. Always has been. Always will be. I may have pointed out a few things, but everyone around is just drawn to you." Ranger explained as his hand slid over the tablecloth and took hers in his own.

Steph looked up in surprise. "Me? I'm nothing special! You're the one everyone looks up to. You're the one that brings order! I create chaos!"

Ranger sniggered softly "Babe! Everyone _loves_ your 'chaos' as you call it. You accept everyone for what they could be and never judge. Look at me for example. You saw through my dark, remote, sterile exterior to the real, fallible man underneath the hype. Then, in spite of my gross stupidity, you even accepted me back into your life. You took a big gamble at the airport. What if I'd pushed you away?"

Steph looked at him, "I wasn't thinking…" she stuttered out as the enormity of her actions hit her.

Ranger could see the way her thoughts were heading. "Breathe Babe. I'm really, _really_ glad you did what you did." He added with the ghost of a lopsided smirk, as he stroked a thumb across her knuckles reassuringly.

"Then there's Connor. How many men would see past the anger and bullshit to see the man crying out for help underneath and want to get involved? Especially after the cold reception he initially gave you."

Steph tilted her head sideways, nodding slightly as she conceded that perhaps he did have a point.

"Babe, people love that you are straightforward yet always see the best in everyone. You stand your ground and fight your corner and defend anyone who needs your help… Hell, you have half of the men here wrapped round your finger and you've only been here a week – which aint bad as most of the men here are even more closed off that I was." He raised her hand to his lips and gently kissed the back of it.

"If you had been anyone else… Lula for example, you'd have been trussed up and left in a cupboard for the spiders to find on day one. You know the rep this office has, or did have till you started working your magic."

Steph grinned. "They'd have to pin her down first." She giggled, imagining what her loud friend would have to say on the matter.

Ranger chuckled then became serious "Babe. I'm so sorry I hurt you. I made my stupid fuck buddy suggestion because I reckoned that with me warming your bed I'd be able to ruin you for all men so that the next time Morelli showed his face you'd think twice before running back to him."

Steph looked at his face and could see the sincerity in his eyes. She turned their still linked hands over and repeated his earlier, reassuring movements with her own thumb.

"I realise that now." She replied. "Rees made me see how badly I'd treated the both of you. I should have called you out immediately and made you explain yourself so I'm just as much to blame if not more so. I must have given you whiplash with the number of times I packed up Rex and my laundry basket! I think I'd stick to actions rather than words though if I were you!" she added playfully.

Ranger took a deep breath before continuing "I just don't want the same triangle to happen with me, you and Rees…"

Steph squeezed his hand to stop him mid-sentence "Ah, well I might have a little confession to make… Ace and I decided that no-one outside Boston was to know about my private life or Rees' either. We did go on a date one time but by 10 minutes in Rees realised that I didn't see us ever becoming a couple. He hooked up with the new girl, Vera, a week or so later with a little help from yours truly and I think they're pretty much tied at the hip…"

"So… you and him… er…"

"No! We slept in a bed together but all we did was talk." She smiled "I was too hung up on some other idiot guy and would have felt guilty…"

Ranger raised a hopeful eyebrow. "So… This other guy… The one you felt guilty about… not Morelli?"

Steph shook her head, looking deep into his smouldering eyes "Definitely not Morelli." She whispered.

"Good to know." He replied as he pulled her knuckles to his lips again to give them both time to gather their wits.

"Ranger… this project you're working on that will keep you in Atlanta. I don't want to sound silly, but if it's got anything to do with me I'd rather know. It's just that I want to earn the respect of the guys on my own, you know…"

Ranger grinned his best wolf grin "S'ok Babe, there is a bone fide and very complex tender that I need to work on so I will be around and about a lot. At various points I will probably even draft in a couple of familiar faces when needed. I will admit that being here will have the added advantage that I can keep an eye on you and be there if you need a shoulder to cry on, but I promise I won't hover over you or undermine you. Instead, think of me as your black knight, hopefully I'll begin to work out when it's appropriate to wave the white flag and admit defeat so that eventually I will win the fair maiden's hand in …"

At that moment the roaring of a violent, wild and caged animal broke the moment.

"Need to feed the beast, Babe." Ranger chuckled as he picked up his menu again, glad that his runaway mouth had been stopped in its tracks. Dios! What this woman did to him! Much as he loved every part of her from her wild hair to the soles of her feet, he didn't want to scare her off with talk of marriage...

o0o0o0o0o

Steph glanced over at the clock on the nightstand, 0630. Ranger's side of the bed was empty but seeing the note that was on his vacant pillow she knew where he was. In the gym. In. the. Gym! She rolled her eyes which was about all the energy she had in reserve right now. How did he manage it! Was he the Duracell Bunny?!

They'd spent the night revelling in each other's bodies. Actually, she'd been determined to wiggle out of him the end of the sentence he didn't finish in the restaurant. Trouble was, every time she planned her attack, he'd kiss her and her brain would turn to mush and talking became the last thing on her mind.

She grinned. She knew she'd probably worked out what he was about to say, but she wanted to hear it. Wanted to know that he was as sure of their future as she was. She wanted him to offer her his Someday. For now she'd leave it but figured she'd get it out of him soon enough if he was serious...

Digging deep, she eventually found the energy to get up to go relieve her aching bladder. As she started to move she realised it wasn't the only thing that ached. Muscles she didn't even know she had protested as she hobbled into the bathroom. If she'd had more energy she would have skipped as thoughts of the night filled her head, but at least on the inside she was doing a really, _really_ big happy dance.

She smiled as she padded back to bed, determined to get at least a couple of hours sleep before her day really began. Bed sheets lay all over the place and even cascaded onto the floor where a couple of the pillows had slipped down to join them. She grinned at the carnage and the actions that had made it all happen.

Snuggling up on Ranger's side of the bed, she hauled the duvet back up and began to relax back into sleep as she planned her day: Unhealthy breakfast. Catch up with Rees and Lester. Kiss the Boss...

**Hope you weren't too disappointed with my handling of Mungo - most of you had him down for a trouble maker who'd kick baby puppies just for the hell of it. Don't forget, there's an awful lot of redemption going on right now and who am I to deny a man like Mungo his share of forgiveness...**


	21. Chapter 21

**Thank you sooo much for your fantastic reviews - so many of you were pleased that Mungo didn't go all vindictive. I just reckon he is a realist!**

**Please enjoy this latest chapter - hopefully you'll enjoy it enough to give me your feedback (hint, hint!)**

**o0o0o0o0o**

"So, what's new?" Steph asked sometime later as she rolled onto her front on her bed with her phone tucked against her ear. She bent her knees and crossed her feet at the ankle while pushing the crumbs from her bagel round in a pattern on her plate.

"Wellllll, I might have some news…"

"Spill! Come on, I want some gossip – there' _so little_ here." She added melodramatically.

"Aaah, poor Baby!" came the amused reply. "Well, last night I might have been out with my woman aaaannnnddd…"

"What! What? Tell me!"

"Ipoppedthequestionandshesaid yes!"

"PARDON!" Steph squealed, as she punched her pillow. "Did you just say you are _engaged_?!"

"Uh huh…" came the smug yet slightly confused reply.

"Tell me all, give me the details, spare nothing…"

As Steph finished her call once she'd gotten all the news, she grinned. Rees and Vera! Who would have thought they'd be engaged – and so quickly! If only…

She shook her head, it was too soon to be having that kinda thought, she reasoned. Yeah, but if she'd not flown off the handle and had actually talked to Ranger, gotten to the bottom of his suggestion. Not only might she have saved herself so many months of heartbreak, but maybe she would be closer to having what Rees and Vera now had… commitment… complete understanding of where they were both headed… sigh…

_Not_ that marriage was her ultimate goal, but if they'd gotten their shit together all that way back when, perhaps, just perhaps she'd be more certain about her future. Well, maybe a ring would be… _nice…_ a little voice inside her head whispered.

"Deep thoughts, Babe?" Ranger asked, as his face loomed over hers on the bed.

Steph grinned and opened her arms.

Breakfast? Check

Gossip? Check

Kiss the Boss? Yum…

o0o0o0o0o

"Ranger…" Steph whispered nervously, as morning changed from mid and towards lunch time. She traced round the edges of his chin with her pointer finger. They were lying in a post-coital tangle of blankets, comforter and pillows on the floor where they'd ended up after yet another acrobatic and aerobic workout. Steph didn't even want to know what had happened to the plate. Or the crumbs…

"Hmmm?" he replied, shifting his face slightly to meet her eyes, an almost smile lazily ghosting his lips.

"I know this sounds weird, but could you make yourself scarce for a few days?"

Ranger's brow furrowed and he shifted so that he was leaning up on one elbow as he looked down at her face. "Trying to get rid of me already, huh?" he asked, a slight look of surprise and confusion in his eyes.

"No, silly!" she smirked, pushing his hair away from his face and over his shoulder. "But Connor and I are nearly ready to announce our team line ups and I don't want Tank or anyone else to think you've helped in anyway. That's all."

"Babe, what's Tank got to do with anything?"

"Well, not so much, but when you announced the competition I did phone and try to get information out of him on the men here and he was less than forthcoming. I suspect part of it was not knowing the guys, but I don't want him or any of the other teams to think I've gotten an inside scoop, especially when we win."

Ranger smiled his wolf smile then leant forward to kiss her nose. "Babe! Do you really think I'd help you?"

Steph pretended to look slightly hurt at his comment.

"It's not like that, Babe." Ranger added, kissing the tip of her nose. "Tank knows I wouldn't get involved in this any more than I already have. He and I made a pact to stay completely impartial and keep right out of everything. As much as you have the most wonderful ways of getting under my skin, I'd never tell you anything that would compromise your standing either here or in the other offices. I've been tortured by the best, Babe, and _never ever_ revealed anything." He looked smug as he raised his eyebrows and finished his statement of self-importance.

"Not even if I do this? Hmmm?" she said softly as her hand travelled down his body. His eyes closed and he took in a leisurely deep breath as she walked her fingers over his skin but they jolted open again and his adam's apple bobbed up and down as her hand reached its destination and she began to work her magic.

Bingo!

"Dios, Babe! Carry on doing that and I'll even join in…" he growled out. Steph giggled and continued her ministrations as she watched her lover's eyes dilate.

"I may have the… strength" he stuttered out as he leant over her, trapping her hand between them "But you definitely have _all_ the power…" he added as he leant in for a bone melting kiss.

o0o0o0o0o

"Ok, Babe." Ranger said, striding into the kitchen just after lunch, shrugging his suit jacket on.

"I'm off for a get-together with the architects working on the building I'm quoting on and apart from that and a meeting I've scheduled with Connor I promise I'll make myself scarce for the next few days. Okay?" He leant down and kissed her damp curls as she sat at the breakfast bar sipping from the enormous coffee cup she was holding between two hands, elbows firmly planted on the table top.

"K" she replied happily as she put her cup down and tipped her head up to look at him. Ranger grinned and leant in for a promise-filled kiss.

"Thanks, Boss…" she added when they'd come up for air. He shook his head as a soft chuckle escaped his lips. How on earth had he thought he could live without this woman, he wondered. He drank in the sight of her, dressed only in his overly fluffy, large white bathrobe as she consumed her brown beverage. His heart danced with delight.

Ranger's phone rang, snapping him out of his reverie and he pulled it efficiently off his hip. "Yo"

"…"

"I'm there." He replied before shutting it off. "Gotta go, Babe. My chariot awaits. See you later."

"Don't get shot…"

"Don't go crazy…"

o0o0o0o0o

The next morning Steph, Connor and Mungo looked at the list they'd compiled on the white board and gave it a final once over. They'd expanded each heading and decided what they thought Ranger had really meant by each activity.

"So, boys." Steph said as she dabbed the board with her pen. Mungo and Connor sat forward in their chairs slightly, neither reacting to the salutation she'd used. Truth be told, they kinda liked it, but neither was about to admit it so they just stared calmly at her as if everyone called them 'boys'.

"I reckon we're about as ready as we'll ever be." She added. "Do we all think we've nailed it?" she added quizzically as she pulled her bottom lip into her mouth. Mentally, both men groaned as they watched her nervous affectation but thought about dead puppies and grinning, slack mouthed grannies kneeling before them, pulling their zippers down…and suddenly their problems seemed smaller, somehow.

Steph sat down and ran through each task, out loud, detailing what Ranger had given them, what they'd decided had been left unsaid, and the guys that would be handling each one. At the end of each task they all made their final, final tweaks then nodded their agreement whereupon Connor wrote down the final version.

The list now looked like this:

Shooting contest (using different firepower from a selection) Chase/Tibbs

Driving skills (evasive driving on various terrain with different weather conditions and possibly under fire) Ian/Frank

Suspect surveillance (in both urban and rural locations), perhaps concurrently

Leo/Jed Ralph/Ian

Skip apprehension (closed social group) (from insular 1950's style neighbourhood) Steph/Mitch

Skip apprehension (crowded environment) (bar/distraction) Steph/Various

Body guarding for a young child (at their own birthday party) Steph/Various

Body guarding for a local celebrity (someone with attitude, gross stupidity)

Tibbs/Jed

Planting evidence (on a moving or unsuitable target for evidence,ie bicycle etc)

Ethan/Al

Assault course and march Physical challenge (assault course with long distance cross country march wearing weights) Mungo/Conrad

Bomb disposal (neutralisation and disposal from a parked vehicle in a shopping mall parking lot) Pike/Robo

Building refurbishment (removal of undesirables and securement of building) Steph/Mungo/Various

logistics (total system crash on a client site and rebuild within 4 hours)

Ink/Connor/Various

Mungo looked at his two co-workers and grinned. "We're gonna nail this!" he added, determination lighting up his face as he rubbed his hands together.

Connor grinned. Yeah, Ranger was a clever bastard, he thought! Nearly two week's ago his life was in the shitter and his office running on anger, mistrust and testosterone. The two miracles he'd been given seemed to have lifted everyone out of the funk they'd sunken into. Now all they had to do was win.

"I think we need to muster the troups!" Steph said as she stood up to stretch her legs and headed for the door.

"Hooah!" came the enthusiastic reply.

o0o0o0o0o

The next few days seemed to go in a whirl of activity. Connor and Will, the Rangeman accountant, methodically went through the worst affected accounts and then picked a handful of the ones that had made their way down to 2 for storage so that Connor could explain how he selected each victim and what he did to hide his evidence. He also admitted that the building 'renovations' had been less expensive than the paperwork suggested and that alone had given him nearly $150,000.

Once Will had all the information he needed, he knew he would have to call in his own team to sift through everything, but at least, now he had a clear of idea of how to brief them all.

He extrapolated his forecast based on what he now knew about the redecorating costs and small time stuff and added it to the original $835k he was certain about and blew out a soft whistle as he looked at the final figure. Nearly $2million dollars!

If it hadn't been that the money belonged to Rangeman, he'd have been very impressed at how clever Connor had been. Now to tell Ranger…

In the meantime, Mungo and Steph worked with the men on planning their strategy, coming up with all the scenarios any of them had ever encountered and working out the best way to tackle or implement each idea they had. There were moments of frustration and the odd clash of personality, but each evening the whole office went to bed with renewed faith in their colleagues, the company they all worked for and the values Ranger held so dear.

Slowly but surely friendships were being built or re-established and Rangeman Atlanta began to heal.

o0o0o0o0o

Connor sat nervously in the small office, opposite Ranger and next to Will, the Rangeman accountant.

Ranger passed a document to him and nodded. "Connor, you need to read it through before signing it. It's a letter of termination and lists all the stipulations that you need to honour in order to avoid charges being brought. There are a couple of key elements within it that you need to think over carefully. The main one being that you will stay in bereavement counselling at a designated residential facility, as chosen by Bobby until he and the therapists decide you are fit for release. Additionally, there is a redundancy package. Please note, however that it will only be made available to you if you immerse yourself in and complete the programme. It is all detailed on the back page. Page 8."

Connor nodded in understanding and flicked quickly to the back page and sucked in a breath as he looked at the figures. "No! You can't be serious! Ranger this is too much!"

Ranger raised his hand and stopped Connor in his tracks. "Think of it as a guilt payment if it makes you feel any better. I should have been there for you. You have been hurting for too long and I have done nothing to help you. I want my old friend back and if I have to stoop to bribery and corruption then I will. Think of it as a way of clearing slates, both yours and mine."

Connor looked at his once best friend as tears welled up in his eyes "But it's more than enough to pay Rangeman back, to cover everything I've taken…"

"It's up to you to decide what to do with it." Ranger added softly, giving him a deep and meaningful look.

"Thank you." Connor said huskily. "I won't disappoint you."

"I'd rather you didn't disappoint yourself." Ranger replied gently.

At that moment, Ranger's phone rang and he paused with his hand over the handset "why don't you two go and discuss this together in Conf Room 4?" he suggested before picking up the receiver.

"Yo?"

Will and Connor got up to leave and Ranger waived to them as they left the room. They shut the door silently behind them to leave him to take his call in peace.

o0o0o0o0o

The week of the tournament was suddenly upon all the offices and each one was sent information on where and when the contest would commence together with a budget for "appropriate equipment and supplies".

Connor immediately called a meeting.

"OK, everyone. As I see it, the contest starts the moment we spend any of our budget. Over to Mungo for what he's managed to find out so far."

Mungo stood up and pressed a button on the remote he was holding. Immediately a satellite image appeared on one wall of Conference Room One. "OK. The airfield where the tournament is being hosted was last used some eight years ago to fly small privately owned commercial planes. At the time it was also used by a couple of flying clubs. A new, and more user friendly site was built about this time and everything except the airstrip and the hangars were stripped out. Since then, it has been pretty much left to Mother Nature who has reclaimed the area with a vengeance. Additionally, much of this area here" he said, pointing to a large area of what looked like open scrubland "is on or just below the water table and is therefore prone to flooding. We will need to consider the terrain when we plan what to take as although we will only be there for five nights, the temperature is not likely to be above 8 degrees in the hours after dark."

"Thank you, Mungo." Connor added before turning to Steph. "OK, so many of you will be aware that Stephanie knows Ranger and the rest of the core team very well and has some insight into the way their minds work so she will be outlining the sorts of things she thinks they may throw at us when we first arrive. Once she has added her particular slant we will need to brain storm what we need to take with us.

"The rules stipulate that we are only allowed to take a maximum of 20 people to the airfield with everyone else running the offices. Any shift shortfalls are to be covered by previously approved contract workers. So Stephanie would you please give us what you've found."

Steph stood up to face the men. Not many weeks before she had been met with a sea of aggressive faces, but not now. Now they all accepted and trusted her and had begun to appreciate the qualities she bought to the building. Some had begun to regard her as a little sister, others saw her as a friend and one or two might have imagined her in their beds. But Ranger's 'almost presence' in the building kept her protected from any enthusiastic suitors.

"Ok." She began "Trenton's core team's military reputation for being one of the best is based on their ability to think outside the box and to assess for every eventuality." She looked round the room and noticed several heads nodding in agreement. "I think they'll try to mess with our plans once we've made any concrete decisions so that we'll be on the back foot. Flexibility has to be the key here. Chances are they're going to push us into the least hospitable parts of the airfield – areas of poor reception and plenty of surface water, with little or no cover from the elements. Places that mean we have to transport our equipment over distance before we even begin the day's challenges. They will probably run a few things concurrently…"

"But we're there for 5 days…"

"Yeah, but like I said they'll be out to test us. I think we'll have times of total inactivity and others that are high pressure and multitasking. I also think they'll be planning to try and mess with us in other ways. Perhaps dawn raids to steal vital equipment, maybe using weird or inappropriate times of the day for what they really have planned for each event. I wouldn't put it past them to set up things that grind us down – loud noises to break up our sleep patterns for example. I think they'll be all about chaos in this tournament. After all, there's a lot at stake."

A soft mumble of agreement swept through the crowd.

"Lucky for you, I'm the master of chaos, though I'm the one who normally causes it."

A few chuckles danced off the lips of her audience.

"As you can see, we have lots to think about and a week to get ourselves battle-ready." Connor said, standing up and snapping the lid off a whiteboard pen he was holding. Walking over to the board he turned to his co-workers "Ok, ideas please."

**Oooh, time to let battle commence, but sadly it will probably be after Christmas now!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Thanks for all your fabulous reviews to my last chapter and I'd also like to thank all of you who've gone on to r&r some of my other stories on the back of this one. You have no idea how much it all means to me!**

**Anyway, the games are nearly upon us so please enjoy and R&R to make me type faster... ;oP**

**xxx**

**o0o0o0o**

Steph rolled into bed, her head spinning with all the things the team had covered. Ranger's large bed was still sumptuously opulent but cold and uninviting. The sooner the games were done, the sooner she would be back in his arms to chase away the cold. Four days ago they'd agreed he would go back to Trenton until the competition was done and the winners announced. Ten days apart and then it would all be over.

...and they could start their life together... she smiled as she snuggled into his pillow, attempting to savour his linger but fading smell.

A thought flickered through her head and made her sit up with a start. Picking up the phone she quickly dialled Mungo. She mentally snorted at what she was doing. Not many days earlier she would have though him to be the last person she would happily phone, but so much had changed. The whole team had changed…

"Wassup, Sister?" a sleepy voice asked.

"Why do you and the men all wear cargo pants?" she asked slowly as she continued to roll her idea round in her head.

"?!" came the more alert reply.

"When you all go off into the jungle, I mean."

"Because that way we don't have to…" Mungo let out a strangled groan. "Comms Room in 5. We need to run your idea past the team. Call Chase, I'll grab Connor…"

o0o0o0o0o

Lester smiled as he looked round Ranger's lounge at the four grown bad ass mercenaries sprawled across the couches who were currently acting like they were all still at kindergarten.

Goofing about as if they had all the time in the world.

In fact they had just 16 hours.

It was the calm before the storm.

16 hours until the fun began and none of them could wait to play with the men (and women) that would be competing. They all knew the games were going to be interesting and that whatever everyone might have second guessed, no-one and he was convinced no-one would get all the twists and turns they had planned.

Ranger looked over at him, tipping his head slightly as he raised an eyebrow and grinned "Care to share, Bro?" he asked before taking a sip of his black coffee and grabbing an apple from a large nearly flat pewter bowl placed in the middle of his large pale oak coffee table.

"Just that I think we have thrown every single curved ball in. If we ever do this again I don't know what we have left in up our sleeves."

Ranger nodded round the fruit in his mouth before adding, once he'd swallowed. "yeah, but let's hope we never _have_ to do this again! Perhaps next time, it'll be because we _want _ to."

"OK, children." Tank said, trying to bring the room to order. He knew he was failing when Bobby and Hector smugly bumped fists having just finished drawing stick men being hung, shot at and climbing in trees along the edges of their copies of the planned itinerary for the five days of the games. Shaking his head he grinned at his partners – in business and "in crime".

Picking up an orange and starting to peel it as Tank waited for the self-congratulation to calm down. "OK. So is everything in place?" he asked again a few minutes later, picking up his copy of the schedule.

"Weighbridge?"

Lester nodded happily.

"Incendiaries?"

Hector smiled, making the tears under his eyes crease up.

"Water cannons?"

Ranger nodded.

The roll call continued until they were convinced they had everything covered.

Indeed, tomorrow morning at 0430 hours let the games begin.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph grumbled.

Three hours!

Three. Hours. sleep.

Then up before crack of a sparrow's fart (English forces version of butt crack of dawn – what?! My father was a fighter pilot in the RAF!) to roll the eight miles to the rendezvous point from the motel they'd all stayed in to give everyone a chance to get a few hours sleep. The team had wanted to have as clear a head as possible so being close to the starting point made sense.

Light was licking the edges of the sky as the Atlanta convoy rolled up to the designated meeting point, the still air filled with anticipation as the calm scene held its frosty, misty breath. The ground and all low lying shrubbery was covered in a slight coating of white and sleep deprivation clung to everyone, adding its impact to the type of cold that seeped into your bones.

Steph shivered and snuggled into her down filled artic-suitable blue mountaineering jacket, pulling the flaps of her hat down round her ears. The man to her left ruffled the bobble on the top good naturedly "y'ok?" he whispered into her ear, not wanting to break the silence left by the dying engines.

Steph nodded and squeezed his bicep through his thick jacket in reply.

Looking out the window she could see Ranger and rest of the core team and that they were beckoning everyone over to a large hanger.

"Don't eat or drink anything they offer you, remember?" Chase whispered to everyone as they approached the building. Steph and the rest of the team nodded.

Let the games begin indeed.

o0o0o0o0o

"Gonna whoop your ass, girly!" Rees said, his hands round an army issue metal mug from which steam was rising as he grinned at Steph. She smiled back carefully, after all he was 'the enemy' for the next five days.

"Not a chance!" she replied through cloudy breaths. Spotting Vera she rushed over to look at the ring she would be sporting only to be disappointed at the space on her finger.

"Took it off, just in case." Vera replied as she pulled her friend into a hug. "Got a picture though she added happily as she pulled her phone out of her pocket.

"Put it back!" Rees hissed softly pushing Vera's filled hand back into her pocket. Quickly the phone was gone.

"Sorry, 'bout that, but we're not sure whether non-standard comms units are strictly OK right now and we wouldn't want to get caught out." Rees explained.

"Gah!" Steph said quietly, trying to sound sincere. "Didn't think of that."

A small commotion pulled her from their conversation as Ranger, Tank, Lester and Hector walked purposefully into the large hangar and headed to the front where a raised area allowed them to see everyone's faces. Bobby lagged behind so that he could shut the main doors before going to join the others at the front.

Steph sidled over to join Connor and the rest of the team who were standing to attention. Guess old habits die hard, Steph thought as she mimicked their pose and gazed at their beautiful leader.

Lester and Hector were holding clip boards and scribbling furiously but stopped once Bobby joined them.

"At ease." Ranger said quietly and calmly as expectation, excitement and anticipation swirled round him like a blanket. The only noise filling the room was that of 132 people breathing.

"Ok. Thank you all for putting so much time and effort into these games, it hasn't gone unnoticed. Just a few things before we start processing each team. I can't stress how important this competition is. It has been designed to test your unique talents and help you hone your day to day business skills - whether it be a mental or physical deficiency you perceive your office to have - chasing a skip through to anticipating the needs of a security detail - what we have planned will help you back in civvy street."

Pausing, Ranger looked around the sea of faces before him. All eyes intent, all minds focused. Yeah, this was going to be a fight that would really push everyone here to their limits and beyond and he couldn't wait to see how much each team learned and what the eventual outcome would be. Patience was a virtue he had in spades, but even he was eager to get on with it.

"Marks will be awarded for planning, implementation, results, your ability to think on your feet and team cohesion. We expect the competition to be fierce as you are the best of the best otherwise we would not have employed you and your managers would not have included you. The games will finish on Sunday with a cook up at which we will announce the winning team. Our decision is final."

A soft rumble of excitement rolled round the enclosed space.

"Miami. You will be processed first. The rest of you will stay here until you are called. No one is to leave the hanger until called. Good luck, everyone."

As he stepped down from the raised area, Ranger locked eyes with Steph and nodded imperceptively. She smiled in response before they lost contact and for once her own ESP kicked in. He expected her to win her individual events, not because she had inside knowledge, but because he knew she could do it. If Atlanta won the overall thing was irrelevant to him, but would be the icing on the cake.

Steph knew that any tiny smatterings of doubt she may still hold onto about their relationship were blown away by his sheer belief in her.

A warm, happy feeling filled her body as she mentally promised herself she would everything in her power not let him down.

o0o0o0o0o

"Last, but not least, Atlanta team!" Bobby yelled out and everyone still left in the hangar headed quickly for the door.

Connor chuckled as he looked at the equipment that lay in neat piles around the blacktop. Duffles, boxes and even what looked like a tent were all stacked in haphazard groups. Clearly there had been some sort of restriction as Steph had guessed two days earlier. He just hoped they'd come up with a way round whatever had been planned.

"OK, none of you had any refreshments so that can't be held against you." Bobby said, happily as he winked at Steph, pleased that they couldn't be 'fined' for that one. Tank was standing next to him, clipboard in hand, and was writing and ticking boxes.

"Right, please roll each of your vehicles onto the weighbridge when requested."

Steph climbed into the first one and fired up the engine. Steph's lightbulb moment the day before made Chase strip out whatever he could from the vehicles and add it to the pockets of the team, all but three of whom now stood round watching as the other two vehicles roared gently to life. Choosing the smallest and lightest members of the group for this task seemed like the next logical step, after all if there was to be any limiting or removing of equipment then the core team would start with stripping vehicles. Plus the likes of Mungo and Jed had bigger clothes ... and therefore bigger pockets.

Steph gave a quick fingers crossed sign from behind the glass and rolled the SUV onto the large metal plates that made up the weigh bridge.

She quickly applied the handbrake then waited patiently for the beep that signalled that she'd been weighed.

"Next!" Yelled Tank as they all heard a large beeping sound.

o0o0o0o0o

Two hours later they'd set their camp up, four 4-man sleeping tents and one mess tent, under some scubby, stunted trees immediately at the edge of a large waterlogged area. It was not the most hospitable position but they figured it was more defendable than some of the other spots they'd looked at. They had no idea where the other teams were situated, but Connor had sent a couple of scouts round who would report back what they found. He figured they'd be under the same scrutiny so had set up guards and made sure that all the equipment was secured within the sleeping tents with at leasty two of the team covering each one. The remaining team members would be sleeping in the mess tent along with the rations and comms equipment. Nothing was left in the vehicles – they figured it was too tempting for any potential thieves…

Ink had started a small cooking stove and reconstituted some dried food at the edge of the mess tent. Coffee and donuts were added to the feast and everyone who was not on security or scouting detail was eagerly tucking in.

Mungo, who was sat next to Steph in the cramped space, nudged her gently and motioned for her to look around the room.

"Thank you." He said softly.

Steph looked puzzled and took a large chug on her coffee.

"For bringing us together."

Steph said nothing but looked into his face. It showed nothing but warmth and friendship.

Shuffling her chair a little closer so that they were practically sitting on each other's lap she replied "…and thank you…" then rested her head against the corner of his broad shoulder. "For working out that taking any refreshments would lead to a fine!"

Mungo sniggered gently.

The team continued to eat their breakfast in silence. Consuming their food and drinks as quickly as possible so they could go relieve the others. They'd been given no itinerary but suspected it wouldn't be long until the fun began.

o0o0o0o0o

"Well, I'll be!" Lester grinned as he sat at a small square metal table in the hangar, looking over the dockets in front of him. He'd taken off his puffa jacket and mittens but kept his hat on, much like the rest of the men around him.

"Looks like Atlanta are currently leading. Can't believe they anticipated our tricks so well. Didn't help a certain blue-eyed whirlwind, did ya, Carlos?" He added, grinning up at Ranger as he sat down.

"You know as well as I do, that Steph kicked me out BEFORE I could reveal any secrets…" Ranger smirked out with a knowing look on his face as he extended his arm so that Les could pass him the clip boards he'd been comparing. Les pushed them across the table, spinning them so that they were the right way round for Ranger to peruse.

"Everything we've confiscated has been stowed, hasn't it?" he added, looking up at Hector and Tank who were sat along another side of the table at right angles to him, coffees and bagels in hand. A grin and a nod were his only replies.

"It's well hidden, no-one will find it, much less even 'borrow' from it." Bobby added, walking closer to the group, dusting his hands together. Leaning over he grabbed a large porcelain mug and filled it with steaming coffee before adding cream and stirring it and sitting down on the one remaining padded chair.

"Oh this is sooo much fun!" Les gushed out. Now I can see why we had to do so much combat training in Black ops! I bet the top brass couldn't wait to pull the stunts they did! Maybe I should volunteer to do some of the training…the things I could do…"

"Focus, Santos!" Tank growled out, a smirk on his face. "We need to head out in 10 and you're already too eager. You're _so_ not right…"

"Yeah, well, just admit you're having the time of your life with this too 'cause it might not be the same guys that fucked with us but … paybacks a bitch!" he said with a smirk.

o0o0o0o0o

Rees looked at Matt and Tom and grinned as they finished setting up their mess tent. They might not have gotten the best camp position and they'd been fined for taking refreshments but luckily that had been minimal. They'd given up a couple of sleeping rolls as they figured they'd probably only get to sleep in shifts anyway.

Hopefully the other teams wouldn't have legislated for the weighbridge but as _they_ had, they'd kept to just over the maximum allowed weight. Good job they'd had big pockets in their clothing too, he thought as he emptied out a washing line, swiss army knife and compass from his left pant leg pocket.

They could survive with a couple less tents and sleeping bags, they'd done much worse, and the loss of their kit bags was no biggie - they'd just stuffed everything into plastic bags they'd thrown on board at the last minute.

Bring.

It.

On…!

**o0o0o0o**

**So, what should they start with, eh?! Needless to say we'll not be getting blow by blow on each set of games, just the highlights, but which one would you most like to see first... please let me know!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Thank you so much for your enthusiasm and warmth towards this story - your reviews have been really awesome!**

**Anyway, without further ado, let's get on with the show!**

"Ok, so let's do a recap." Chase said as he smoothed the map out on the folding table now positioned at the rear of the heavy dark green canvas of the mess tent.

"Miami are here. Boston here. Trenton… here and New York are just there." Ian stated, pointing to various points on the map. "The hangar is here and the confiscated items are… just… here. I think… it's only a gut feeling but the area around it has been disturbed, but the tracks were covered up well. Hopefully we won't get desperate enough to really try and find it all!"

Several heads nodded in agreement. They'd not lost any equipment or supplies so far and figured the best thing to do was steer clear of the mystery of where it was all stored.

"AT EASE!" a familiar voice boomed out and the mess tent fell silent as Ranger and Tank strode into camp. All eyes turned towards the intruders as they ducked under the canvas. In his hand Ranger was carrying a small black plastic wallet.

"Connor, well done so far. Currently you are leading after points were deducted for poor planning but as you know there is a long way to go." Ranger explained as he handed him the parcel. "This piece of equipment is our way of reaching you and your way of reaching us. We can contact you at any time, but should you choose to ask questions or request clarification then be advised, you will be marked accordingly. Make your comments count, gentlemen… and lady." Ranger said. "Dismissed." He added as he and Tank turned and left.

All eyes turned to Connor as he opened up the waterproof cover and pulled out a walkie talkie. "Ok, so this looks straight forward enough." He said, just as it crackled to life in his hand.

o0o0o0o

Steph sat nervously, watching the rest of her team who were as agitated and fired up as she was. The camp had been set up for six hours and yet, for some reason, no instructions had been received on the walkie talkie.

Mungo walked over and sat down next to her.

"Whatcha thinking, Steph?" he asked, rubbing his hands together to keep the circulation going. The day had warmed up slightly, getting to roughly 10 degrees, but sleep deprivation was starting to make itself known and everyone was feeling chilled, despite their warm clothing.

"Nothing really, just keen to get started. Part of me is excited and part of me is worried and… part of me just wants to get home to my nice warm bed… complete with human radiator."

Mungo chuckled "Yeah, any military op tends to go like this. Plans are made, battle lines drawn, intel collected, then we wait. Wait for the signal to go…" He turned and smiled gently "so, this human radiator of yours… did he give you any hints as to what to expect?"

"Who says it's a him?" Steph replied, keeping her blank face on and watching confusion spread across Mungo's face.

"Er…! I mean to say, I just… assumed!" he stuttered, blushing slightly.

Steph giggled "Had you!" she added, breaking into a big smile. "…and no. My human radiator didn't give me any clues as to what he had planned. I think some of it's based on my ability to make him think outside the box though." She added, hugging her arms round herself tightly.

"?!" Mungo replied eloquently.

"Well, I met Ranger through the Bonds Agency my cousin owns. I was down on my luck and decided to try my luck at being a BEA. My first job was trying to track down a cop wanted for murder and I wasn't being too successful. I think Ranger thought I would stay in the job for 2 minutes and quit when I broke a nail so I guess he decided to tag along for the ride." She smiled as she remembered his face when she'd turned up at the diner so very long ago. "But I think he realised I was serious when I phoned him in the middle of the night asking for his help. I was cuffed to my shower rail…"

"Why didn't you just pull it off the wall or use a hair clip to unlock yourself?"

"weeeelllll, I didn't have the strength or the skills aaaaannnnndddd it wouldn't have helped anyway as I was er …naked….?"

If Mungo had been drinking anything at that moment, Steph reckoned she'd have been showered with it as he did a double take at her confession. Once his brain had computed what she'd just said he burst into laughter and doubled over, slapping his thighs in delight.

"It wasn't funny!" she pouted, trying to look pissed. "Anyway, Ranger was a perfect gentleman and it was then I realised I could trust him, _really_ trust him. I guess from then on I knew he had my back."

"Yeah, and your sides and your…. front." He added, swallowing as he thought about what she'd look like with clothes on.

Before Steph had a chance to say anymore there was a large clunk followed by the sound of water smashing against the canvas they were sitting under. The power of the spray pushed through the fabric and began to cover the sensitive equipment located all around the room.

"What the fu….!" Someone shouted then all hell broke loose.

"INCOMING HOSTILE!" Steph heard as people scrambled to get the equipment secured and covered and deal with the attackers.

o0o0o0o0o

Every. thing.

Absolutely. every. thing.

Ached...

Steph tried to warm herself in front of the small heater that glowed hopefully but futilely in the recently rebuilt mess tent but gave up and started flapping her arms around instead as she stared out at the brightening morning sky.

Jed was stirring a pot over the stove, quickly creating a warming meal of porridge on his pretend campfire. By his side was a generous portion of dried fruit and nuts which he threw in at the last minute before piling it into metal bowls.

"Come and get it!" he yelled stoically and immediately several cold, hungry tired men dashed in to pick up their portion and inhale it before heading out to continue guarding or rebuilding the broken camp.

One of the poles of the mess tent had snapped under the sheer weight and pressure of the water and two more needed emergency repairs.

But that had not been the worst of it. They'd lost vital equipment including food and supplies. Two of the tents had rips in them that had not been fixable so they'd cobbled them into one as bet they could, doubling up beds and sleeping arrangements as best they could.

Grabbing three extra bowls, Steph wandered off to the back of the tent where Connor, Ink and Leo were deep in conversation.

"Here you go, Boys." She said as she handed them their breakfast. "So, how bad is it?" she added through a thin smile, trying to sound optimistic.

"Well we certainly didn't see THAT one coming." Connor said with an equally tight smile. "On the positive side, the shelter provided by the surrounding bushes and trees did absorb some of the impact so part of the camp is damage-free..." He looked up at the canvas they were under "somehow though, I doubt we've seen the last of the cannons…"

Grimly, they all agreed.

As they all continued to survey the list in front of them a cheer went up as "they're back!" could be heard.

Stepping out from under the canvas they could see Chase, Tibbs, Ian and Frank driving back in one of the SUVs. Once a beautiful, pristine shiny black Ford 150, now a mud splattered, dented old truck.

The optimism of the camp slowly evaporated the closer it got.

Steph looked at the faces of the men that surrounded her. They'd been on site for just under 24 hours and already some of the team looked broken. They had four more days of hell and if they didn't get themselves together right now then they might as well give up any ideas of winning.

o0o0o0o0o

Hector grinned and gave Lester and high five as they walked into the hangar. The sun had now risen high enough in the sky that colour was returning to the landscape around them

"Report!" said Ranger as they neared the table.

"Miami won the shooting. They had Archie on their team so no great shock there." Les replied.

Tank chuckled but was not surprised, after all Archie was a legend with any ballistics related weapon. Hell, he'd even been known to shoot blind folded and win. It was as if he had a sixth sense that allowed him to see invisible targets.

"Who came second?" Ranger asked stretching out his hand for the paperwork.

"Trenton put up a good fight, coming second, Boston then Atlanta with New York following up at the rear."

"Good and pretty much as expected though I would have thought Tibbs might have been stronger" he added offhandedly as he continued to study the list.

"So, the driving then. Did New York sweep everyone off the table, Bobby?" he asked, turning to his dusky skinned colleague.

"Yep – no great surprise there. Even in the final, half light round they were the fastest. Though they did manage to knock over a 'pedestrian' in the racing section." He added. Using air quotes round the word pedestrian.

Ranger nodded.

"Then Atlanta. Frank was like a man possessed. I think he must have been talking with the shooters and found out how they did - I've never seen him so focused… or determined."

"Good to see" Ranger added.

"Then Miami, Trenton and Boston.

"sooo." Bobby said, looking at the results so far. "Atlanta were ahead as we went into last night, but it looks now as if Miami are in the lead after these two events."

"Great!" said Tank, looking over his shoulder. "Knew my boys were gonna win" he added, looking smug.

"Your guys?! Since when have we been routing for particular teams?" asked Lester, looking surprised.

"Since Boss man elected to keep Bomber at Atlanta" Tank replied, adjusting a pair of recently purchased, wire framed half-moon glasses on his nose and looking over them at Les with a superior look on his face.

"Well, in that case, the New York team belong to me!" he replied indignantly, folding his arms across his chest and pouting.

"Children, children…" Ranger started but was interrupted by Hector who stated "Bobby have Boston. Begin with B, uh? So I take Trenton then" in such a way that everyone stopped and stared.

"Sounds fair to me" said Bobby, shrugging his shoulders. "Now, are we ready for the next coupla rounds? I'm soo looking forward to today's fun and games." He added, rubbing his hands together.

"You know, Bobby? You are sooo not right!" Lester said, shaking his head and everyone joined him in laughing.

o0o0o0o0o

"So what's next, d'ya reckon?" Jed asked to no-one in particular as he walked into the mess tent and sat down on an empty stool placed in a large circle round the stove. It was the nearest the guys could get to re-creating their own blazing, log burning campfires from outdoor childhoods spent under the stars. Anything for a touch of happy.

Jed leant forward and helped himself to a large mug of steaming coffee from the jug hanging over the man-made flame.

Lots of long faces huddled in a similar way sat quietly, wondering what on earth they were all doing. They'd all left their previous lives and joined Rangeman for many different reasons, but those that were ex-military all remembered one of the things they hoped they'd never experience again. Yet here they were in colder than cold shits-ville, hungry and tired and dirty and achy and…

...and then there was the water cannons... and the trashed truck...

"God knows, 'cos I sure as hell don't." said Frank with a wry grin, shaking his head slowly. "I forgot we was up against Fin from the New York office. I did my best, but _he_ is _the man_ behind a wheel. The. Man! D'ja get what I'm sayin'?"

They all nodded dejectedly in agreement, even though most of them had never heard of Fin.

"So you're saying we just mope about feeling sorry for ourselves because we didn't win this round?" asked Steph, incredulously. "Where are the bastards that greeted me on my first day?! The punk-assed arrogant sons of bitches that thought they were superior to the rest of the world?!" she added, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.

She glanced over at Connor and gave him a hard stare. "We _can_ win this thing…"

"No, no we can't..." Connor said in a tired voice. The other teams have all been working out since they joined Rangeman. It's part of our contracts … only somewhere down the line we just stopped doing it…" he sighed out in defeat.

Steph stared at him before turning back to the rest of the circle. "Really? You think that this is all about fitness and strength and brute force?!"

Everyone nodded.

"Face it, Steph. We may have planned for everything but most of us rarely hit the gym any more and we all laugh at the idea of getting up at 5.00 am to do so. I think I can speak for everyone here - we're all tired beyond anything most of us have experienced for a long time. ! We're has beens and this tournament will show this to be true, regardless of how much planning we've done." Connor added softly.

"Well I'll be!" she choked out. "We're done before we even start! Ranger and his team have beaten us with their psychological warfare and we've only been here a day!" Turning on her heel she stormed out, waving her arms about Italian style, muttering losers and morons as she went.

"Steph's right, you know." Chase said, looking pointedly at each man in turn. "It might not be a fucking picnic but we knew that coming in. Couple of little set backs and we're done?! It's not a boy scouts tea party but what the hell?! Let's have some fun. So what if we come last?! It's not like we're the model office anyway, so if we lose it will be expected so why the defeatist attitude! Let's show Steph and the rest of Rangeman we're capable of going for it anyway."

"It's not the winning but the taking part? Abso fucking lootley, I say! It's about learning from your mistakes and let's be honest there's been plenty of those haven't there!" he added. "It's about time we stopped feeling sorry for ourselves and manning up. Steph and this tournament were given to us for a reason so let's use them to our best advantage. In the last couple of weeks we've proven we can work and think like a team. Don't let's throw that away now just because we've lost some equipment to a lousy water cannon!"

With that he stood up "I'm gonna go check on Steph, make sure she's ok. We need her in our lives, guys. Let's not fuck that good thing up at least!" and with that he hurried out into the morning leaving a pile of embarrassed men shiftly uneasily in their seats.

Each man cringed at the accusations that lay thickly around them. Chase was right, they needed to grow up and behave like the Rangemen they should have been all along…


	24. Chapter 24

**Hi guys, I'm trying to post one chapter a week for the rest of this story, so here's my latest submission, sorry it's a little shorter than usual (I usually try to write between 2 and 2 1/5 thousand words but I think this one needed to finish where it did...)**

**Thanks for all your continued words of encouragement, they really do matter to me!**

**You know the drill, read, enjoy (hopefully!) then R & R**

**xxx**

The walkie talkie hissed and crackled then burst into life. Ethan, one of the quietest of the Rangemen present and one of the most stealthy too, picked it up and spoke into it to affirm he was listening. The game was on again.

He quickly walked over to the tent Connor was in and said "knock, knock" as he bent down and let himself in. "Next set of orders just came through, Boss. Bomb disposal and building refurb - said we need to be ready at the hanger at 11.40 hours."

Connor nodded from deep within the middle of the sleeping bag he was using and climbed out, fully dressed except for his boots which he pulled on quickly. Everyone knew they needed to up their game and Connor had been no exception so had been catching up on his zzzd's as had anyone else who was not on duty.

"Thanks, Ethan. Gather everyone in the mess tent for me. Be ready in 5 minutes for a briefing."

Ethan nodded then quickly retreated to go do Connor's bidding.

o0o0o0o0o

"Soooo, bomb disposal and building re-furb, my _favourite_!" Lester said, grinning at Hector who was rubbing his hands in anticipation.

"Everything set?" Ranger asked as he looked up from the clipboard he was holding.

"Sure thing." Came the confident reply.

"Good. So while Bobby and his team brief the teams, Tank and his men will be out wreaking havoc…" Ranger added, a sly glint in his eye. Although he was admitting nothing, he was sooo enjoying these exercises and perhaps Lester was right, they needed to do them more often…

o0o0o0o0o

"Each office will have a designated part to play in this exercise and there will be only one winner." Bobby explained as he handed a sealed envelope to each of the teams now assembled in the hangar. "Some of you will be playing the part of good guys, some will be the bad guys and some will be a bit of both, but your roles and objectives are detailed in the packs I have just given you. You have 15 minutes to familiarise yourselves with the information before we begin. Good luck everyone."

The Atlanta team moved to one of the corners of the hangar, away from everyone else's ears and Steph looked at Mungo anxiously as he opened the brown A4 envelope Bobby had handed him. "Well, Big Guy. What are we doing?" she prompted as the rest of the team huddled round waiting while (authors note: not 'whilst'…!) he scanned the sheets he had just pulled out.

"It appears that we're some of the good guys." He said "However, it looks like we have rivals who will also be trying to secure the building. The goal is to clear out and tidy as we go and prevent our counterparts from doing the same. At the same time, there will be a number of bombs in the building with differing levels of complexity and our job it to disable all the green ones. Reading between the lines, though, this is the easy part of the game."

"What do you mean?" asked Robo as he draped himself over his twin brother Pike's shoulder, angling in slightly to make sure no-one had to speak above a whisper.

"Well, so far nothing we have done has been straight forward or even remotely like we envisaged. Look at the shooting for example. It was done in the dark and early dawn to really test us. The night vision goggles were a help in the black but pretty useless in the half light. Then there was the driving which was in rickety old go-carts and ancient muscle cars as well as our SUV's and involved deep gullies as steep inclines rather than road like conditions, soo, all I'm saying is that this seems too simple, that's all."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"We need to be extra vigilant and assume that any scenario we have ever come across could well be included or exaggerated, so let's have your experiences, no matter how off the scale they might have seemed at the time. Anyone have anything happen that was really, and I mean _really_ outside the norm?!" Mungo asked.

"Well, people are always shooting at us, so we can expect that." Pike said. Heads nodded in agreement, after all, people didn't like change and clearing pimps, prostitutes and felons out of a building used for nefarious activities was as big a change as you could probably get.

"I fell asleep once…" Steph started and all eyes darted towards her "What?! I was tired… but Tank got shot and I nearly got blown up." She added indignantly, folding her arms and pouting.

Jed leaned over and grabbed her round the neck, rubbing his knuckles in her hair "You really are one on your own, Kiddo, you know that right?" he added as he smirked at her. Steph playfully smacked him in the gut and giggled as she tried to wrestle herself out of his embrace.

Mungo gave them a death glare and the conversation quickly turned back to the task at hand and the rest of their time was spent working out their plan of attack.

"TIMES UP!" Bobby yelled when 15 minutes had passed and everyone turned to face him. "We need to move out to the rendezvous point." He added, beckoning everyone towards him.

Steph turned her navy seals cap round so that it sat backwards on her head, this was it, her first challenge had begun. Butterflies, bats and crows jostled for position in her stomach as all the Rangemen present waited for further instructions.

"This way, please. Miami, you need to go with Aaron. Boston with Tag. New York…"

o0o0o0o0o

The Atlanta base camp was on high alert, expecting the unexpected and ready for anything that Ranger and his team of sadists had up their sleeve.

"It's too quiet." Connor said, turning to look at Ink who was scanning the rough, uneven ground in front of him. "Yeah." Came the tense reply.

"Run the heat sensing equipment round the perimeter again, will ya." he commanded quietly before turning back to the mess tent hoping for a status report from Mungo and the team via their cell phones.

Ink nodded and began to move off.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

"WTF?!" Ink yelled out as he looked down at the front of his jacket which was now covered in bright orange paint. Diving for cover he rolled to soften his descent then crept forward yelling out as he did so "Snipers! Alert!"

From his vantage point behind a small hillock, Tank grinned. Before Atlanta had had a chance to react, his men had made some clean hits. Two of the men in the camp had paint on their torsos. They were now out of the game.

He raised his walkie talkie as he gestured to his men who silently crept off towards their next target.

"Atlanta here."

"Both men with paint on their torsos belong to me." Tank stated. "And I know who we got." He added happily.

"K" Came the pissed reply.

"Send them out now, complete with whatever kit they were using when they were shot… especially the heat sensor." He added with relish, mentally patting himself on the back. He knew Atlanta would be pissed to have lost such a vital piece of equipment. He just wondered if they'd brought more than one.

Immediately, Ink and Ralph came out from the camp and marched unhappily towards where Tank was now standing. Neither had had a chance to prove themselves or help the rest of the team. Strangely enough it was this last fact that annoyed them the most.

o0o0o0o0o

Pike and Robo disarmed the last, and most complex, of the bombs and gestured Jed and Ethan to pass by. The rest of the team had split up into pairs and they had successfully beaten their rivals, Trenton, and had gained complete total control of the dilapidated farm buildings that had been the place of the afternoon's exercise.

Maybe their years of practice of being intimidating bastards had stood them in good stead for something Mungo thought grimly as they tied up the last of the New York team members and herded them out of the building and into a makeshift 'holding pen' they had created by driving a couple of old farm trucks and a tractor into a circle, using chicken wire as a 'fence'.

Bobby nodded to them as they passed and one of his men checked a stop watch he was carrying then wrote down some information on a clip board.

"Ok, well done everyone." Bobby said. "I think we can safely say that we have finished this task. We just need to make a few more notes and check out a couple of things so if you could all stay put that would be very helpful." He added before turning back to his colleague who was still holding the clipboard.

As the exercise was pretty much over, and having just untied and released the last of his 'prisoners' into the pen, Mungo wandered round to the back of one of the trucks so he could catch up with a couple of the guys he hadn't seen since he'd left the marines. As he leant against the side of the vehicle the tail gate swung open and smashed into his shoulder. Mungo dropped like a stone and everyone rushed over.

Bobby pushed through the crowd and knelt quickly at his to assess the damage.

"What's the prognosis, Doc?" the wounded man winced out.

"Looks like a broken collar bone." Came the reply as Bobby gently manipulated Mungo's shoulder. "'Fraid it looks like you're out of the game." He added matter of factly.

Steph, Pike and the rest of the team looked at each other. One of their best field men was down. What else could go wrong?!


	25. Chapter 25

Tot ch 25

**Sorry guys, I dropped my laptop when I was out with my kids at a soft play park, so had to get it fixed (I did a real number on it - if it hadn't been for the fact I couldn't see a great deal, it was really pretty - lots of feathery floaty bits!)**

**Anyway, back in the game so have been typing away like a mad thing…**

**Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews to my last chapter. I had been worried that you would all stop reading as it's been taking me longer to update than I would have liked, but luckily you're hanging on in there with me.**

**So, without further ado…**

Ranger looked at Tank and then at the men that had been 'shot'.

One from New York and Miami.

Two each from Trenton and Atlanta.

None from Boston.

"Ok men. You are officially out of the games and I'm sure all of you are wondering what happens now." He looked at the blank faces.

"You will be staying on site and assigned new tasks, working with the skeleton team we've brought in from outside agencies. You will not have any more contact with the rest of the contestants or try to influence anything in any way, but you will still be involved - by assisting us instead. Do you understand?"

Five heads nodded.

"Ink?"

Ink snapped to attention, a look of surprise on his face.

"You're quite handy with a cooking pot I understand. Plus you can't do any worse than Lester…"

"Hey! I heard that, Cuz!" came an indignant reply from behind a pile of boxes not far away.

Sniggers rattled round gently.

"…so if you can promise not to poison anyone, you're in charge of catering."

Ink grinned and nodded "Sir Yessir!" he replied confidently.

"Silvio? You will assist Hector and Freddie..."

o0o0o0o0o

Spirits in the Atlanta camp were mixed as everyone gathered round for their evening meal of some sort of grey reconstituted meat and vegetable gloop with hard biscuits, stale tepid water and piping hot coffee, happy about their win in the last event but saddened by the loss of their team members.

Mungo had just returned with his arm in a sling.

Bobby had taken him to the local A&E for x-rays but deemed him fit enough to come back and Ranger had ok'd for him to join the rest of his team. Everyone knew he would only be able to plan rather than participate in any further events so he, Chase and Connor had shuffled things round accordingly to accommodate both his loss to active duty and Ink and Ralph completely.

"Where do you think we stand overall in the competition, Boss?" a voice spoke out, mirroring what everyone was thinking.

"Difficult to say."

"Didn't recognise anyone from Boston in the hangar, but it looks like we weren't the only office to lose men to Tank's snipers." Mungo added round a mouth full of food. Fuck it tasted horrible, he thought, but his stomach would have won any argument his mind might have come up with right now. He'd missed his last meal by taking a trip to the hospital and his stomach had complained all the way back to camp.

Heads nodded, then silence descended as everyone returned to their metal trays, too cold, tired and hungry to notice the high temperature of their food.

Steph was starting to feel full so paused, looked round and smiled. They might be two and a half men down, but for some reason there was a camaraderie she hadn't felt before – as if they'd shifted up a gear and were now operating as one. Taking a deep breath she focused back on her nearly empty plate. Maybe, she thought hopefully, the confidence crisis of last night had been averted as a sort of 'Dunkirk Spirit' took hold instead.

Before long, one by one the men slipped away out of the mess tent and into the fading light. Some to wash up, others went to relieve team members that had been on duty or crashed in sleeping bags to get some shut eye. Connor, Chase, Mungo and Steph went to look over the events so far and try and prepare them for what tomorrow and probably even tonight might bring.

o0o0o0o0o

Ink shovelled piping hot roasted potatoes, carrots, broccoli and green beans onto china plates using a large shiny serving spoon that he'd found in the well equipped kitchen Lester had set up in one of three offices along the back wall of the hanger. His mouth watered as the smell of chicken in a white wine sauce he'd just finished preparing hit his nostrils. The reconstituted stuff was _ok_ in an _emergency_ but this fresh food was way, way better. Perhaps there were perks to being sidelined he thought guilitily.

"Come and get it!" he yelled as he picked up a couple of the large plates he'd just piled high and took them to the table now set up with napkins, cutlery, glasses, salt, pepper and a large jug of iced water.

o0o0o0o

Ear defenders in hand, Lester grinned at Freddie who was sitting behind the wheel of an open sided flatbed truck with his ears already covered, before giving him the thumbs up and switching on the pa system stored on the floor at the back. Covering his ears Lester jumped into shotgun position beside his partner in crime. Immediately the air filled with the noise of sirens, blaring across the landscape. They set off to torment the teams, sound screaming from the four loud hailers secured in a circle on the roof of the cabin. Hector and Bobby followed in their own, similarly kitted out truck and sped off in a different direction the sounds of loud booms emanating from their speakers.

Steph groaned and rolled in her bag. Oh, for fuck's sake, what now? She growled out as she rolled over onto her front, pulling her pillow over her head to try and deaden the sound. As her actions were not in the least bit effective, she climbed out from her pit with a deep and frustrated sigh and exited the tent she'd been in, zipping up her jacket against the cold as she went.

The rest of the team were assembled in the mess tent as she walked in. Clearly they'd been right to assume noise would be used against them she thought. As the tent closed behind her the sirens faded away. Off to invade a different camp's dreams.

"Thought things were too good to be true." Connor said grimly as he handed Steph a set of wax ear plugs.

"Ok, guys. I know these will not drown out all the noise, but it should keep the sounds down and allow us to communicate with each other." Chase said, just as the sound of loud booms flooded the air around them.

Rolling his eyes, he nodded and everyone filled their ears. Waving his hands slightly he shouted "time to go to sign language."

'Go. Sleep. Dismissed' he gestured.

Tired heads nodded and everyone returned to their tents trying to block out the noise as they did so.

o0o0o0o0o

"Report." Said Ranger into his walkie talkie.

"Looks like Atlanta have ear plugs." Said Hector.

"Ha ha! You should see the chaos in Miami's camp." Grinned out Freddie.

Ranger smirked as the team updated him on the effects the noise was having on each of the five teams.

Later, when all the fun had stopped and Ranger had returned to the comfort of the family run hotel they'd booked for the duration of the games, he lay on his bed, thinking about his own blue eyed 'siren'.

She'd lured him into her arms ensnaring him with her magic and he'd been powerless to stop her. Jezebel! He grinned at the parallel. She certainly ruled his life he thought.

His cock and his heart both swelled as he ruminated about the last few weeks and how she had accepted him so easily back into her life. Dios, he'd fucked up and nearly lost her for good! Thankfully she HAD forgiven him.

He'd been a total fuckwit and hadn't even realised what he'd nearly lost until it had come back to him. She completed him, mind, body and soul…

He rolled over to trap his growing erection against his soft, crisp white sheets, attempting to tame his body as he continued to wonder about his good fortune.

Perhaps he did deserve her. Perhaps his years of sacrifice for the good of others, no matter what ugly things he'd had to do, had given him brownie points with the man upstairs after all...

He hoped the games were an eye opener into his world for her.

Steph'd recently told him that most of the time his actions were more of an indication of who he was and what he was thinking than his words and he hoped this was true. She would never truly understand what he'd been through on his many missions, but he hoped that what she was experiencing now – the cold, the hunger, the uncertainty, the adrenalin, the camaraderie, the highs and lows – would give her better insight into his life than any words he could ever use. He also hoped she'd forgive him for putting her through it all once it was all over!

He chuckled as he imagined her crumpled, sleep filled face and wild hair as dawn appeared over the horizon and wondered whether the others would see the vulnerability wrapped around her steely resolve. _His_ wonderful, chaotic, vibrant woman…

Mine!

His smile turned sour as his thoughts turned to Ace and Falcon and how the three of them had kept the truth from him. He'd been going insane with jealousy thinking about Steph in Rees' arms.

_**Flashback:**_

"_I just don't want the same triangle to happen with me, you and Rees…"_

_"Ah, well I might have a little confession to make… Ace and I decided that no-one outside Boston was to know about my private life or Rees' either. We did go on a date one time but by 10 minutes in Rees realised that I didn't see us ever becoming a couple. He hooked up with the new girl, Vera, a week or so later with a little help from yours truly and I think they're pretty much tied at the hip…"_

_"So… you and him… er…"_

_"No! We slept in a bed together but all we did was talk. I was too hung up on some other idiot guy and would have felt guilty…"_

_"So… This other guy… The one you felt guilty about… not Morelli?"_

_"Definitely not Morelli." She'd whispered back knowingly._

_**End flashback:**_

Ranger groaned as the look she'd given him that night flooded his brain. It was a look of promise and hope, shyness and ferocity. Mine...

At some point he would have to deal with his meddlesome brother, but right now he had more pressing matters he thought as he sat up and leaned back against the padded suede headboard, pushing the sheets down to expose his aching manhood. Taking a deep breath he leant over to the nightstand to grab the box of Kleenex with one hand and his aching cock with the other.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph lay in her cramped narrow cot, the sounds of the world muffled by her ear plugs. They had an added benefit in that they also helped drown out the snores of the men in the tents around her. Canvas was good at concealing, she decided, but crap for noise abatement.

Looking at her watch she could see it was 03:23 in. the. morning...

Sighing, she shifted onto her side and scrunched her eyes shut as she pulled out an ear plug that was sitting uncomfortably. Why on earth was she so wide awake for Chrissakes?!

Someone coughed and rolled noisily and another man farted. Was this what being on a mission was like she wondered as she re-rolled the wax and jammed it back into her ear.

She shivered and pulled her jacket closer round her body, snuggling in for warmth, wishing it was her own personal Batman. Praying that thoughts of her had given Ranger a reason to come back from his missions - in the same way as her own thoughts of him gave her the strength to go on right now.

**Ok, so not much of the contest here, but I felt we needed to see how our two lovers were coping…**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hi Guys**

**Looks like you're enjoying this story - I'm having so much fun writing the contest part and you're words of encouragement are really enouraging me to type faster!**

**Life's been bu****sy so I haven't had time to proof read this too much so apologies for the literals and typos.**

**Enjoy and please review, it's the only 'payment' us writers ever get (and it so lifts my day, that's for sure!)**

**xxx**

Dawn broke early as the weather welcomed the campers' return to consciousness with the pitter patter of large angry rain drops on canvas.

"Great" thought Steph. "Fucking cold and fucking damp. Wonderful." She grimaced and tried to roll but the sleeping bag she was in was wound tightly round her and she knew she needed to untangle herself if she was going to have any hope of moving.

Several grunts and curses later, Steph released herself from her down filled prison and went in search of coffee, her breath billowing like steam around her head as the rain started to fall even harder than before, turning the world soft grey.

As Steph entered the mess tent she heard the sound of laughter and the unexpected noise made her break out in a smile.

"Steph!" Connor said excitedly as he handed her a metal mug filled with pale brown steaming coffee. "Guess what New York tried to do in the middle of the night?!"

Steph grinned as she wrapped her black, knitted fingerless glove covered hands round her drink "don't tell me, er… something stupid?"

Mungo chuckled "Yeah, you could say that…" clearly not wanting to steal Connor's thunder.

"Seems they took more of a mullering than we did when the water cannons were turned on them and when the last real down pour occurred they must have decided it was worth taking a gamble and trying to get a couple of the tents that were confiscated when we first arrived." He paused and took a drink for dramatic effect. "So at 05:15 they sent in three of their best trackers and lost them all!"

Steph looked a bit surprised at New York's apparent stupidity.

"Apparently their camp is a disaster. They've been reduced to one piece of canvas, held up on uneven poles, with only a couple of sides to give them any shelter and last night's rain seems to have been the final straw. Looks like they were pretty desperate and their brains must have fallen out." Connor explained with a wry grin.

"Seriously?" Steph asked, her eyes wide and her chin on the floor. Surely no-one was that naive, were they?!

"Yeah, seriously! Seems that the confiscated equipment was just too tempting and because of the poor light and crappy weather the would-be thieves missed a couple of traps. They all ended up dangling in a cargo net, covered in fluorescent paint." Supplied Mungo, creasing up with laughter. "Fucking amateurs!"

"How did you find out?!" Steph asked incredulously.

"Chase couldn't sleep and decided to go for a scout about to clear his head. Plus he wanted to see how the other teams were doing. Saw the whole thing." Connor replied.

"Does that mean they might do a raid on us or any of the other teams then?" She added.

All the laughter suddenly stopped. "Christ! Good thinking, Steph." Connor said soberly.

O0o0o0o0o

"Well done, men." Ranger said loudly to Silvio as he watched him herd the three very subdued, paint splattered New York Rangemen into the hangar.

Rubbing his hands to keep them warm and just because he could, Hector stood to one side grinning as the traps he'd help set up had been so effective.

"Mine, yeah?" he asked Ranger as he took the men's names and crossed them off the list of active personnel.

"Have at 'em" Ranger said indulgently.

"K boys. This how it work. You now work for me, eh?"

The three men nodded. "Time to go set up new activity. Which one of you good with flame thrower?" All three men grinned and nodded like bobble headed dogs. "You not right!" Hector humphed out snippily but with a twinkle in his eyes. "We not use."

The New Yorkers looked confused.

"We play with smoke though…" Hector said slowly with an evil grin on his face.

"Hector, you are enjoying this way too much!" Ranger grinned out, shaking his head slightly before stepping away to see how Lester and his team were doing at setting up the next set of exercises.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph sat quietly, letting the noise of the rain calm her as random thoughts floated round head. It was clear that they'd underestimated the evilness of her man and his band of sadists.

_Her_ man!

Wow!

How she missed Ranger and hoped that in amongst the fun he was probably having he was missing her too.

Her man… yum.

Hot, sweaty….

"F.O.C.U.S!" A tiny voice of reason yelled out, stamping her feet to get Steph's attention. "We need to win this thing! Get your mind and hands out of his pants!

Steph did a mental cough, blushed and took a deep breath, then let her mind wander to slightly more productive thoughts.

Why was it that the teams were being whittled down? She wondered.

Was it Ranger's deliberate intention to thin the teams and how would this effect morale and their ability to perform? If only Atlanta still had a full complement of Rangemen on their team they could function at full strength and be more effective…

Steph had a stupid, irrational and utterly mad light bulb moment and went off in search of Chase to tell him what she'd suddenly thought about.

It was something that no-one in their right mind would try and do.

An evil grin spread across her face.

If it worked, perhaps Atlanta might yet turn the tables and win.

o0o0o0o0o

The walkie talkie crackled to life and Connor reached over to grab it.

"Rangeman Atlanta, receiving!"

"Get your teams ready for the surveillance and skip apprehension contests. 11.30 at the hangar. Do you copy?"

"Affirmative."

Steph rolled her eyes at the brusque manner of the call, then realised why Ranger had such appalling telephone manners. Go figure that she should work out why in the midst of this contest.

Connor put the handset down and grinned at the whole team who, apart from the guards, were huddled around him.

"It's a go, 11.30." He grinned out.

"As soon as Mitch gives us the all clear, the rest of you know what to do." Everyone nodded.

The fun and games were about to begin.

Oh boy…

o0o0o0o0o

The Rangeman Atlanta team climbed out of their SUV, strode purposefully up to the hangar and walked inside. Each tasked with identifying relevant information that would be vital to the success of their mission.

Steph waved at Ink who waved back as he continued setting up a table for eleven men. She pretended to look for Ralph but in reality she was looking to see who else was present. She knew Ranger was not close by as her neck was not tingling, but she could see Bobby and Lester. She waved at them and continued to look about, glad that Ralph was not anywhere to be seen so that she had the excuse to continue to gather information. Like where the guards were.

Leo and Jed were casing the joint for hidden cameras and additional electronic security measures and Ian and Mitch were scoping out the size of the building and paying particular attention to the layout. Bit by bit, each of the team gave their information to Mitch who murmured into his ear piece, giving Mungo everything he needed.

"This way." Tank yelled out, suddenly appearing from nowhere. Immediately Ian whispered something to Mitch who relayed what he had seen to his base camp team mates.

"We leave in five. Everyone needs to get into the vehicles they arrived in. A map with co-ordinates on and your instructions for these exercises have been placed inside." He quickly left the building and everyone else started to follow.

Steph was nervous and excited all at once. If they'd planned this right, they could end up with a huge advantage over the other teams and maybe, just maybe, they would stand a chance of winning this thing.

But if it went wrong... she shuddered at the implications.

She just hoped no-one else had come up with such an insane and audacious plan. She grinned as she saw Mitch say a few final words then surreptitiously flick his tiny earpiece/microphone into a waste paper bin near one of the tables.

o0o0o0o0o

"Targets neutralised." Ethan whispered as he crept up to the hangar.

"Copy that. Go get Grandma and Popsy." Mungo commanded softly.

Ethan nodded in understanding and gestured to Pike who angled himself out of the undergrowth and walked into the hangar as nonchalantly as possible.

"Pike! What you doing here, man?" Someone asked as he moved into the middle of the room.

"Hey, Fraser, didn't expect to see you here, Bro'. Just wanted to see how the other half were living, you know." He replied. "Food smells good, is Ink spoiling you?"

He ambled over towards the table which was now surrounded by 8 seated men who were tucking into large plates full of lasagne and salad. Three more, including Ralph, were walking over to join them having just put some equipment down in a nearby crate.

Ink smiled "Pike! Good to see you, but should you be in here? We're not supposed to be talking to you guys now that we're 'neutral'." He said, putting air quotes round the word neutral.

"We'll see about that." Pike added, smiling before he turned and nodded at Ralph who grinned back. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet of smokes. "Anyone got a light? Mine died when the water cannons went off."

Someone sniggered and everyone immediately relaxed as several lighters appeared. "Don't let Ranger catch you" someone said.

"He ain't here, dipshit!" a different voice added. "He's out with the teams, fuckin' 'em up good styl-ee." He added with a chuckle.

"Oh. Well that's ok then." Pike said, putting his packet of cigarettes away. "He won't notice that you're all gone will he?!"

Everyone looked at him, non-plussed, then realisation dawned as he pulled out his gun and aimed it at them. At that moment, Chase and Connor oozed into the room, pulling a couple of trussed up men behind them, guns drawn but at their sides.

"We're going for a walk, back to our camp." Chase explained. "We figured you might want to get back in the game, or at least stretch your legs. 'Sept if you come with us you'll be working for Atlanta." He added.

Ralph stood up and backed away from the table, reaching for his own weapon and aiming it at the men he'd been sitting with moments earlier.

A couple of the boys started to stand up in surprise but Robbo appeared like smoke and stood at his brother's side gun in hand, so they quickly sat down again.

"Weapons on the tables, boys." Connor ordered softly as he moved in front of the twins.

One by one, the men removed their guns and knives from their clothes and laid them down, gently, on the table. Ralph leaned in and gathered them up, putting them into a nearby crate.

"Look. I know you all came to these games to get some action but you know as well as I do that Ranger won't let you back into this contest as long as you're in or guarding this hangar. You come with us and at least you'll be in the middle of everything again."

"What if we don't want to? We have loyalties to our own offices, you know!" one of the tied up men said indignantly. "Why should we switch allegiances?"

"Fair comment, but if that's the way you feel we'll just use you as pack horses to get the gear we want and then you can come back here and join the others."

"Sounds fair enough." The man replied, blandly, shrugging his shoulders.

"Ink, Ralph, you coming?" He asked

"Sure thing Boss." Ink replied, ripping off his apron "Just need to get a few supplies." He added as he headed back into the makeshift kitchen.

Ralph merely nodded happily.

"Who else is coming with?" Connor continued. None of the other men volunteered, but clearly they were enjoying this unexpected turn of events. "Suit yourselves." He said with a nonchalant shrug. "You three, go help Ink." Three men stood up and followed and quickly returned laden with bags.

"Any more food back there?" Chase asked.

"Affirmative, but it's no longer edible." Came the amused reply.

"Ralph, Robbo, grab any equipment you think might come in handy, use some of the guys if you need to." They both nodded as a couple of the men grinned and stepped forward, volunteering their empty arms.

"So. Here's what we're going to do." Connor said. "Grab your lunch and file into that room over there." He waved towards one of the empty offices next to the 'kitchen'. "We're going to make it difficult for anyone to rescue you. K?"

The men all nodded, smirking as they grabbed their plates and started to move off. After all, most of them had nothing better to do and at least they'd be out of the rain for a while.

"Not you, morons." He growled as the three fully laden men started to follow, staggering under the weight of the food they were carrying.

"We need to move." Ethan said softly, reminding everyone that time was ticking.

The rest of the team nodded.

Robbo started to head out, gesturing to the three pack horses to lead the way. "Be back in 5, Bro." he said to Pike as he, Chase and Ralph disappeared out the door.

The captives sat happily in their prison. Plates on laps as if this sort of thing happened all the time, while Pike and Ink chained their legs together, said their goodbyes then locked them in.

"I'll set up a couple of little surprises." Pike said "You go and search out Mitch's ear piece. It'll be in one of the waste paper bins."

Ink grinned and he and Ethan began to look.

"Found it!"

"Good! Our job is done here. Let's get the hell out of Dodge."


	27. Chapter 27

**Hi Guys, sorry for the delay in posting this one - it was Mother's Day this weekend so we've been pretty busy - my kids made me the most 'wonderful' hama bead creations - now, where to store them... But the cards they made were fantastic!**

**Thanks for you wonderful reviews - you really are twisted if you can take enjoyment out of other people's misery! ;o)**

**Anyway, let's get back to our 'little' contest shall we?**

Ranger, Tank and Lester waved the teams through where they stood, like sentries, by the airfield entry gate gesturing for everyone to park up. As the contestants clambered out of their vehicles and headed over Ranger continued to study a file containing the latest results, feigning nonchalance.

As he'd expected Atlanta and Trenton had done the best with Boston a close third. New York and Miami had not performed quite so well, but as most of their work was not in this area of expertise, he'd expected things to turn out pretty much as they had.

"This whole exercise has been a really good way to sort out gaps in training, Cuz." Lester said as he looked over his cousin's shoulder before handing him some additional paperwork which Ranger stored at the back of the file with a nod.

"Proud of you Babe." Ranger whistled almost imperceptively as he read something before he closed the file and turned his focus to his staff.

"Yeah Bomber. Great distraction." Lester added happily low enough that no-one outside their little group heard.

Tank just nodded in agreement, pleased that Steph had outshone everyone else. "Vera gave a great performance but she still has a lot to learn compared to the master." He added as the final stragglers joined the group.

"Listen up!" Ranger said as he looked at the sea of faces before him, split almost imperceptively into their respective teams.

"As it stands, Atlanta are currently in the lead with Miami hot on their tails. Boston and Trenton are tied in third position and New York, thanks to their escapades this morning…" he paused and gave their team a pointed look, a couple of their mute faces were red with shame "…are three men down and in last place."

Groans could be heard from the New York Teams while Atlanta grinned happily.

"We saw some good work today but as we reach the half way point it is all still to play for so expect the unexpected and we'll radio you with your next set of instructions soon. Dismissed."

All heads nodded and the teams dissolved back into their vehicles and raced away just as dusk began to descend.

"Fuck I'm hungry!" Tank said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation of his next meal. "Nothing like a good distraction to whet the appetite. I wonder what's on the menu for this evening." He said happily. Like the others he was really enjoying these games and like the others he was already planning a few surprises for the next ones.

"Come on, Big Guy." Bobby said, happily, clapping him on the back, as he and Hector joined them. "Let's go feed your beast."

Hector snorted. "Beast belong to Angel. Tank have _lion_ in his belly!"

Everyone laughed as they hauled ass into their SUV's and headed back to camp.

o0o0o0o0o

"I wonder if they pulled it off." Steph said, pulling her bottom lip into her mouth nervously.

"Well, if nothing else, our guys will have had a ball trying." Mitch replied, outwardly calm but inwardly just as anxious, as he steered back to their temporary home.

"Yeah, but wouldn't it be cool if the raid _worked_." Steph sighed out and looking round at the rest of the guys around her.

Jed ruffled her hair "Either way, we're in first place, thanks to you. Good call on the distraction, Girly."

Steph grinned "Thanks. It's what I do best."

"Not what I've heard. Santos says you're the Queen of Chaos!" Mitch chuckled out.

Everyone laughed and Steph giggled back. The afternoon had been hard but fun and had allowed them to showcase their skills. Somehow all was right with their world.

However, if they'd managed to pull off the impossible, Steph hoped that Ranger would not hold it against them for too long…

o0o0o0o0o

"We did it! I can't believe we fucking did it!" Connor said as he leapt round the mess tent, a chicken leg clutched in one hand and a large glass of Pepsi in the other.

"Don't get too excited, Boss." Mungo grinned out trying in vain to calm him down.

Ralph stepped back into the mess tent. "All repairs are completed. We have a full complement of tents and we are fully operational again. But the real bonus is that we now have some really kick ass stuff to add to our arsenal."

Connor whooped with glee then choked on a piece of chicken.

"Dumbass!" Chase smirked out as he bashed him on the back, trying to get the man to breathe again.

o0o0o0o0o

I don't believe it! I don't fucking believe it! Ranger ranted to himself as he watched Hector attempted to disarm the tricks Pike had used to hamper their attempts at freeing the men locked in the store cupboard.

"Whoever it was who'd carried out the raid was in for a world of hurt, sneaky bastards." He added petulantly.

"How the fuck did they get past our guards?! Tell me how the mongrels got in!" Ranger ground out as Lester stood, desperately trying not to show the amusement that was fighting to get out. It was rare that he saw Ranger like this and he'd bet any money that Beautiful was behind it somehow.

Ranger paced back and forth like a panther as he waited for Hector to work his magic. His face full of fury.

"Whoever is behind this is going to pay. Dearly!" he spat out. "What you laughing at Santos!" he said, glaring at his cousin.

"What if it was Bomber?" came the amused reply.

"I'll take a hundred on that" said Tank as he wandered over. "All our food supplies are gone along with some interesting bits of equipment and it looks like Ralph and Jed are too."

Ranger stopped in his tracks. Could it be? Was it possible?!

Bobby sniggered at the less than blank face Ranger was sporting. It was times like this he really wished he'd brought a camera along, despite Ranger's insistence that what happened over the course of the tournament, stayed in people's heads only.

Hector gave a yell as a small explosion went off and threw him back with surprise.

"You ok?" Bobby yelled as he rushed over.

"Hah! Fuckers did good bobby-trap!" he replied, rubbing his hand along the middle of his chest. "Bit of shock is all." He added as he flexed his fingers and rolled his neck. "Nearly there." He added as he picked up a pair of wire cutters and began to whistle.

"It's a booby-trap, you dimwit!" Bobby growled out as he stood by and watched Hector kneel down in front of the lock once more.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph climbed out of the black SUV she had been riding in, grinning at the sight that met her weary eyes. The others were hot on her heels and they were slapping each other on the back and making lots of cheerful banter.

They'd done it! The broken down, beaten up camp they'd left this morning was now smart and orderly and proudly standing to attention. New tents replaced the water damaged ones that had been there earlier and as they got round the edge of the mess tent she could smell chicken – or at least it smelled like chicken. Please let it be real chicken…

Happy sounds were coming from inside the canvas.

"Steph!" Mungo shouted and he rushed over and gave her a bear hug with his good arm. "We did it! We got into the hangar and helped ourselves to everything we needed, included Ink and Ralph."

"And Ink's awesome cooking skills." Someone added round a mouth full of food. "This stuff is gooood man!"

"I think we can expect some form of retaliation." Connor added giving her a pointed look as he wandered over with a couple of large plates of food. He passed one to her just as Jed snatched the other one before anyone else could get it.

"Oh I think we're in for some real trouble." Steph grinned out as she picked up a chicken leg from her plate "I would just love to see the look on Ranger's face." As her mind imagined him losing his cool she giggled and soon more laughter filled the camp.

Once she'd calmed down she knew they had to spread the word. "Guys, I think we need to let the other teams know what we've just accomplished. I think New York's failed attempt this morning will have put any of the other teams off having a go. If Ranger and his team are kept busy enough then perhaps they will be slower to have a go back at us."

"I love your way of thinking." Ralph replied with a chuckle, pulling his phone from his pocket. "I know coupla the guys at Miami and I'm sure they'll get a kick out of our news."

o0o0o0o0o

"Ok, first things first, we need food." Lester said as he came back out of the temporary kitchen. "Trouble is, someone has sabotaged our equipment. Looks like I'll have to rebuild everything. Could take me a while."

"How long?" Ranger growled out, just as his stomach echoed the sound.

"'Bout an hour?!" came the reply.

"I'll order pizzas" Bobby said, wandering outside to get a signal.

Moments later he returned, his face full of frustration. "Looks like our signal has been compromised. Someone is jamming it." He added "I'd get Hector on the case but he's still working on releasing the prisoners."

"Just fix it, Brown!" Ranger spat out. Whoever had done this was in for some serious pay back he decided as he went off to see what was taking Hector so long.

o0o0o0o0o

"Fuck I'm full" Steph said lazily as she stretched out in her chair and patted her belly. Food had never tasted sooo good.

"Yeah! Can you imagine how it tastes after 6 months on tour in 'Sand City', Fuckistan!" Mungo added turning his head round to look at her.

"I can imagine!" Steph replied with a grin.

"Luckily, you have no idea, and I hope you never find out." He added somberly.

Steph gulped as she wondered how all her co-workers who'd served their country had coped.

"We just did and we're fuckin' proud!" Mungo added.

"Out loud?!"

"Yeah, out loud."

Giving him a nervous look she added "Tell me. Tell me more." In a voice not much more than a whisper she added a soft "please."

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"Not about the mission, but some of the conditions. I want to understand." She looked at him a silent yet determined plea in her eyes.

Mungo sighed. "Well, if you're sure…"

o0o0o0o0o

"… really?!"

"…"

"Priceless!"

"…"

"Thanks for sharing, Ralph"

"…"

"see ya, bye."

Matt put his phone down and snorted with amusement.

"What?!" Rees asked intrigued by his Boss' reaction to the news Ralph had obviously just given him.

"Gather the rest of the team." He said "You'll never believe what Atlanta have been up to…"

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger was cold, tired and extremely pissed off but somehow strangely aroused when the 'prisoners' were released and confirmed that it had been the Atlanta team who'd locked them up.

He'd inwardly chuckled when he realised that over the course of a few hours roles had reversed. Atlanta were probably sitting pretty with warm food, secure accommodation and enough ammunition to keep any would be thieves away. Not to mention the toilet roll that they'd also extracted – he couldn't even have a… sigh, clever evil fuckers. He shook his head in reluctant amusement.

His dinner had been cold beans straight from the can. Luckily there was enough for everyone to have their own tin and there had been two left over which Tank had devoured before anyone else had gotten a look in.

As he patrolled round the perimeter of the hangar against the bushes and scrub, Ranger almost smiled as he remembered some of the bullshit he'd spouted at Steph "expect the unexpected" and "always be aware of your surroundings" being the first two that sprung to mind.

Perhaps Steph was not the only person who needed to be reminded of these phrases. Lester had been right, these few days were throwing up all sorts of gaps in people's knowledge.

Behind him he heard a slight rustle so he quickly disappeared like smoke. He had the feeling that whatever or should he say, whoever, was making that noise had heard about Atlanta's antics and was trying their own luck.

As he drifted away into the undergrowth a different phrase floated round his head "fool me once, shame on you…"

**Please R & R, it makes me type so much faster**

**xxx**


	28. Chapter 28

**Hi guys (hangs her head in shame) sorry for the delay in posting this... (but the next chapter is waiting in the wings - 20+ reviews and it's yours!)**

**Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your wonderful comments, you twisted people! ;o) **

**Hope this chapter is worth the wait, more shenanigans...!**

Dawn raised its despondent head and smiled weakly down on the hanger that held the core team and their crew. Ranger sat quietly in one of the canvas chairs, nursing a cup of pale caramel, sugar laden coffee. He figured he needed the caffeine, the calories and the sugar hit if he was going to make it through the day without tearing someone's head off…

He sighed as he swilled the coffee in the huge china mug which was clasped between his long fingers, hoping to fill his hands with warmth.

He was NOT supposed to be feeling like this! He mentally pouted.

He was _supposed_ to have been rested and filled with good food, not cold, tired and hungry, he thought, petulantly.

Dios! He whined internally then shifted in his seat as he thought about the one person who had caused his discomfort. A wry chuckle slipped from his lips.

He really should have known better than to underestimate the Bombshell Bounty Hunter, he realised as he slowly raised his mug to his lips and took a deep draw, mentally saluting her for outplaying him. He'd get his own back though…

Looking out of the corner of his eye he could see Hector and Lester in discussion, clearly plotting some form of payback, but they were going to have to wait. Revenge was a dish served cold and he intended for it to be filled with ice cubes.

"Over here, Hector! Lester!" he yelled causing several heads to snap up and look as the pair wandered over. "I know you're plotting something, but this needs to be planned with utmost care. I realise it has to happen while we're still here, but…"

"Ha!" Hector snorted. "Plans don't work with Angel. We need surprise!"

"Yeah" added Lester angrily. "I didn't stand still at all on my watch last night. I swear every team came down for a go at us once they'd heard what had happened. We'll never live it down, our reputation is shot to shit!"

"Si" Hector scowled, folding his arms across his chest and nodding his head gravely.

Ranger rolled his eyes and blew out a large sigh. "Boys… Boys… boys... _We_ are the master of surprise and the longer _we_ wait, the more wired _she, _er I mean_ they _will be." He explained like a patient father.

"Why do I think we're gonna live to regret this?" Lester groaned, shaking his head. "So. What's the plan oh Exalted Leader."

"Not a fucking clue." Came the bemused yet stoic reply.

o0o0o0o0o

The walkie talkie crackled into life and Pike picked it up from its resting place in the middle of the command centre table.

"Atlanta here."

"Logistics team needs to be ready for 1105 hours at the hanger. Assault course team, 1150 same location. Do you copy?"

"Copy, Red Leader." He replied with a grin.

"?!"

"Sorry, always wanted to say that…. Star Wars…"

"Ha fucking ha" came the slowly rolled sarcastic reply followed immediately by static.

"Guess you pissed them off, eh?" Steph said as she wandered over.

"Think we're already on their shit list." Pike said, shaking his head to stifle the chuckle that was threatening to come out.

"Yeah, could be right. We need to really keep vigilant. I'll tell the others we've had our latest orders" She added before ducking out of the tent in search of Connor.

o0o0o0o0o

"Well, according to my calculations Atlanta are way, way out in front." Tank said as he wrenched his glasses off and flung them down on the planning table as he ran his empty hand frantically across his exasperated face.

"How do you work that out?"

"Well they were leading after the distraction games and if we add points for the two men they retrieved and gave them points for being sneaky bastards then they're in the lead by …. 12 points on… Miami who are their nearest rivals."

"You what?!" Ranger said grabbing the score sheets from his second in command. "But we only have … 5 things left to complete" Ranger whined out, looking down the list "I can't believe you gave them 5 for taking over our camp!"

"Even if we only gave them 1 point they'd still be 8 points in front and there'd be 15 points between them and New York who are currently last." Tank said, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair.

"I'd rather we deducted points…"

"You know we can't!" Tank replied dully as he looked up at the ceiling for Divine Intervention. "They out foxed us and should be rewarded accordingly."

"Couldn't we just allow them to be smug as they eat our food and use our toilet paper and leave it at that?!"

"I wish! But no, we need to be fair about this. New York forfeited four points when we captured three of men on their failed snatch and run mission. Atlanta should at least be given one point for breaching our defences, a point for locking up our guys, another for the clever use of theft to kill our morale and a further two for getting Ink and Ralph back." Tank added reasonably as he counted his observations out on his huge fingers, holding up a splayed hand with all five digits showing.

"Don't want to be fair about this…" Ranger muttered grumpily as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and jerked backwards in his chair like a stroppy teenager.

Tank laughed at his best friend and business partner and then sat in silence for a few minutes, trying to figure out a way to even things up.

"Who said we need to play fair?!" Tank finally said as an idea started to take shape. "You know how to play a Joker, right?" He said slowly as he leant forward, steepling his hands and dancing his fingers together in front of his lips. "Wellllll… how about double or nothing for each team on the remaining games?" he continued as a grin spread across his face and his eyes snapped to Ranger's.

Ranger thought about the suggestion for a few moments. "Like it… Tank." He said slowly, as he pondered over the possibilities. "10 points for playing the winning Joker, with the rest getting usual amounts. Last place if you play the Joker and don't win. Hmm. This could even up the figures quite nicely."

Ranger looked at the list again. "Atlanta might do best in either one of the body guarding tests but they can't win both and the others teams have different strengths and weaknesses. I think we need to play to Atlanta's perceived secret weapon - Steph providing a woman's touch... Tank, I this could be one of your finer moments." He said as he leaned over and put his hand out for a high five.

"Hoah!" came the enthusiastic reply as their open palms met.

o0o0o0o0o

"They want us to play a Joker?" Mungo asked, clearly confused as he listened to Connor explain what he'd just been told over the walkie talkie.

"Yeah. Double or nothing. And we've got just 10 minutes to decide on what to bid for." Connor added.

"So that means we get twice the number of points if we play our Joker and win, but last place if we lose?" Steph asked in clarification.

"Yup."

"Wow…" said Steph with a grin slowly spreading out across her face. "We must be so far in the lead that they're getting pissed." She added smugly.

"How did you work that out?"

"Well, going in we were the total underdogs, right?"

"Yeah."

"But at the end of the distractions we were leading and that was before they even got back to the hangar, right?"

"Yeah."

"And we beat their asses and stole their equipment from under them."

"and don't forget the toilet roll…" Chase added with a snigger. Several eyes were rolled. "What?! That was a stroke of genius." He added pretending to look hurt.

"They must have given us points for our little stunt." Connor concluded happily. "And now they're trying to even things up a bit, aren't they?" he added as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Maybe we could win this thing after all…"

"Yeah, but where do we play the Joker?"

"Good question." Connor added.

"Body guarding the kid." Mungo stated flatly.

All eyes turned to stare.

"We won't stand a chance on the logistics gig. And with Silvio out of the running, New York are probably the next best at that one. I can't do the assault course and although Jed's a good replacement, he and Conrad have never worked as a team before and aren't completely aware of each other's strengths and weaknesses, so we have a built in disadvantage there. Planting evidence could involve anything so I'd say that was an even playing field which leaves us with two options. Of the two, I'd say looking after a snippy assed celebrity is easy, we just ignore and protect but a looking after a kid takes a subtle touch and let's be honest Steph's good at subtle…."

Someone sniggered and tried to hide it with a cough.

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, I think." Steph said, looking round the group.

"Well, Mungo's logic seems to make sense,so that's it settled, then, I guess." Chase said with a finality to his voice. "Are you okay with this, Steph?"

Steph nodded. "We really haven't many options, do we?"

"Ok, then. I'll let Tank know our decision."

o0o0o0o0o

Tank rubbed his hands together with glee. As predicted Atlanta fell for it and played their Joker against body guarding a child while Boston played theirs against the celebrity. New York plumped for logistics, just beating Trenton at getting their bid in so they went with planting evidence, leaving Miami with the assault course.

"All set?" Ranger asked.

"Yeah."

"Good. As per our conversation, I had a word with Lester and Hector and they've managed to change the kid we had originally booked for one that will give all the teams a bit more of a challenge, so to speak."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah… Enzo…Franelli."

"_Enzo_ Franelli! Enzo _Franelli_?! Not _Enzo Franelli_… the 14 year old punk ass kid with the pyrotechnic tendencies?!"

"One and the same." Ranger said with a grin. "This is going to be _really_ entertaining."

"Atlanta's insurance is up and good, huh?"

"Oh fuck yeah!" Ranger added with a grin as he strode over to the coffee pot for a refill.

"Oh, fuck yeah, let the headaches begin!" Tank echoed as he joined him.

o0o0o0o0o

"See you later… good luck!" Steph yelled out happily as she watched some of her team mates climb aboard their SUV's and head off.

Mungo stood at her side. "Can't believe tomorrow afternoon is the cook out…" he let his thoughts trail away for a few moments.

"Coffee?"

"Good idea."

The two of them ducked into the mess tent and found themselves alone as they made their way to the coffee machine where they quickly grabbed a drink before sitting down near the portable heater.

Steph smiled. "…yeah. I can't believe it's nearly all over either." She added with a sigh. "Gonna miss this. The lows as well as the highs. I sorta understand why Ranger feels the need to go play Rambo now."

Mungo snorted. "He needs to stay here, with you. You're where he belongs now." He added, giving her a pointed look. "Look… Steph…" he said before taking a large mouthful of his coffee to give himself some time to put his jumbled and troubled thoughts together. "I really want to thank you, y'know."

Steph opened her mouth to speak but Mungo gestured at her to stop so she closed it again.

"When you walked into my life, our lives, as in Rangeman Atlanta, well you just pissed us all off, big time."

Steph didn't say anything but waited while Mungo took another swig to allow the statement to linger in the air. It was obviously a huge and ugly thing to admit and he needed her to understand.

"I fucked up, well, we all fucked up!" he gritted out to the ground before looking up at her. "You coming to Altanta was the best thing for all of us but none of us saw it to begin with. Okay, Little Sis, I won't lie we all resented you. All squeaky clean, with your perky hair, fuck me heels and bright shiny smile. Miss Goody Two Shoes. The golden girl sent from on high to preach about the wonders of women to the darkest, meanest bunch of emotionally retarded men that ever worked in one building together."

Even as he said it all, Steph could see he was embarrassed by the words he spoke, so just sat and rubbed his sweatshirt covered arm gently in encouragement. Mungo looked down at the movement and put his hand on top of hers.

"Even now, you're not judging. By rights you should be ripping me apart for my comments, but you're not. You're amazing Steph. One in a million."

He smiled, squeezed her hand gently then moved his own away. Steph cocked her head slightly and he smiled in response so she began caressing again.

"But you came at us, all guns blazing – or should I say all stun guns charged - and shook us to our roots. You kicked our jaded asses and made us stop and re-evaluate everything. Your passion for Rangeman surprised us all. Your… your relationship with Ranger shocked us – after all, he had a rep for being the mother of all mother fuckers and yet you'd _tamed_ him. _Tamed him_! You took all of our crap but never used it against us when you could have. You made us want to be better… and you wriggled your way into our hearts and minds and set up camp there. In the short time that we have known you you've change us all - me, Connor, Chase, even Pike and Robbo don't seem so monotone and automatic."

Steph looked embarrassed. "Well, I don't think I've done…"

"Steph! Don't! You are just… I'm not trying to pretend you're a saint or anything. But… just thank you."

He put his mug down and cupped her face gently between his hands. She looked a little shocked and nervous. "Shhh, Lil Sister." He said, gently caressing her face with his thumbs as he pulled her closer then tipped her head down so he could kiss her forehead tenderly. "Just… thank you."

**You know the drill, R & R guys Mwah! **


	29. Chapter 29

**I knew I should have held out for 30 or even 40 reviews! Normally I get lots of lovely comments but it usually takes a few days for them to trickle in...**

**Anyway, this one is for all of you who took the time to ensure I posted quickly. Read and review, it makes me types faster (see, I do sometimes deliver!)**

**Enjoy...**

The walkie talkie crackled into life and Steph picked it up to take the next set of instructions. Wow, she thought once she'd digested the information, this was it, her final test which had, no doubt, been designed with her in mind. She thought back to the one time she'd body guarded a kid before – spoilt little rich kid that had run off with the car.

Not gonna happen again, nope, no, nah ah, no siree.

She smiled at the lengths the Atlanta team had gone to to prepare for some of the more interesting tales Steph had had to tell and in anticipation of this very test they'd installed tamper proof seat belts in one of the SUVs and it would be this vehicle they would use. Once the kit was engaged, no-one would be able to get out until the engine stopped.

She smiled and went in search of Ethan and Ralph as they were to be her partners for this. Once the three of them left there would only be four guys left behind. She just hoped everyone else was as stretched as they were and therefore unable to play with their camp or steal their equipment. The toilet roll was now legendary and she had a sneaking suspicion that this would be the first thing a rival team would pilfer. Luckily Mungo had stashed it somewhere safe or so he said.

Mungo, she thought – her latest 'hero'.

She was still reeling from his earlier revelations and had been very humbled by his confessions. Surely she hadn't had that much of an impact, had she?!

Apparently she had. Even Ranger said she was something of a catalyst for all things good.

She hoped this would still be true of her and Batman's relationship when this was all over and whatever he had planned as revenge had taken place. Hopefully they would leave the hatchet firmly buried on the airfield when they left.

Unless of course he did something totally unrelated to the tournament...

Her mind turned back to the body guarding she had to do. She hoped the kid was at least a little street wise and would be able to spot any potential trouble but be relatively compliant in the case of an emergency. Maybe they could even work as a team and she could appeal to its better nature?

Yeah, that would be good she thought happily.

Perhaps a sweet little girl – maybe about Mary Alice's age, say 10 – who would be fun and could work. Maybe they could even do some shopping. She sighed at the thought. Nah! That would be far too easy and she had a suspicion that the kid they got would be the opposite of anything she could wish for.

After all, Ranger still hadn't inflicted _any_ sort of payback yet…

o0o0o0o0o

Ethan was the first out of the SUV and opened the door for her once they'd arrived at the hangar.

"Ethan…" Steph had whined. She really didn't need babysitting herself and yet one of the men was treating her like glass, again. She did a mental head slap as it hit her - he probably wasn't treating her any different to any woman he might have as a friend, so suck it up, Plum, she thought.

Ralph quickly joined them and the three of them set off towards their fate.

Once inside Ranger motioned for them to join the others who had already arrived. Only Trenton had yet to pitch up and they walked in just behind them.

"Okay teams." Ranger began once everyone was gathered around. "I have envelopes for each of you detailing five activities you need to do with your charge. In a moment we will introduce them to you and once you leave with them you will have approximately four hours to complete all the tasksk before returning the children safely to us. Understood?"

Affirmation filled the air.

Tank walked in with five kids and Steph began to give them the once over.

A black, punk assed looking teenage street kid with corn rows and attitude to spare, two sweet but immaculately and expensively dressed girls of about 8 and 10, a skinny runty geek with spectacles who looked about 8 but was probably about 12 and a petulant toddler complete with cuddle toy.

Great, thought Steph. Bet we get the toddler.

"Atlanta, you will be taking Enzo." The specky runt stepped forward. Ranger handed Steph her orders and the four of them left, heading back to their SUV.

"I need a smoke." Enzo announced to no-one in particular "Anyone got one?" he added hopefully, stuffing his long fingered hands into his jeans pockets. Immediately they slunk down, exposing the tops of his boxers.

"No." said Ethan carefully, looking at Steph with mild panic in his eyes. No-one had been expecting that to be the kid's first words.

"Okay, let's go grab a coffee and discuss how this thing is going to work." Steph said calmly even though her heart was beating far too fast. Why did she get the feeling this was all going to go FUBAR and pretty quickly, she thought.

"Like your thinking" Ralph added and pulled out of the parking lot and headed off the airfield.

Enzo stared out the window and inwardly giggled. This was going to be way fun. He thought as he remembered Hector's instructions "Take your time. Reveal yourself slowly. Tease them then do your worst." Oh, he planned to do his worst.

Yeah, payback's a bitch!

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger hoped she would forgive him as he handed her the envelope. In it he'd detailed the tasks they had to perform. Nothing too worrying, all quite innocent really. A trip to the park, shopping, a sporting activity, a meal and a spectator sport. What he hadn't added was that Enzo needed no protection and that Atlanta did. He rubbed his hands nervously down his cargo pants. He'd unleashed a beast and now let the fun begin.

Yeah, payback's a bitch, but he just hoped once it was all over she would see the funny side of it.

He turned slightly in the seat he was sitting in, in response to a noise behind him.

"Can I go watch, Cuz? Pleeeease?" Lester asked enthusiastically as he bounced over to join him. "It's gonna be so much fun!"

Ranger shrugged in response. "Yeah, could be fun to watch, but I'm coming with." He added with a grin. Payback's not only a bitch, he thought, but sometimes it just warmed your heart…

o0o0o0o0o

"Okay, so, we have to take you to the park and to the mall where you have to buy something." Ralph said as he read through the information on the sheet "But as we're here already, let's do the last thing on the list and get something to eat, does that sound good?" he asked Enzo.

Enzo just shrugged "Whatever." He said carelessly.

"Once we're done here we also need to do something active – maybe bowling, skating? Anything you fancy?"

"Yeah, sex. I love a bit of pussy." Came the bored reply.

"Okaay. Wasn't expecting that one!" Ethan said brightly, mild hysteria evident in his voice.

"Play nice, Enzo." Steph warned. "We have a Joker riding on today's activity." She shot him a warning glare.

He pretended not to care but inside he was stifling a happy dance. This was going to be soo much fun and he'd been given free range. These pussies weren't going to know what hit them, he figured. Plus the woman was kinda hot if you were into old people, he decided. A fire started to smoulder in his groin and he grinned, disarmingly.

"Sorry, just need food. Tend to get all moody when I'm hungry." He added innocently. "So. I'll have the bacon and cheese burger with curly fries." He said as he dropped the menu he'd been holding down onto the table they were sitting round.

o0o0o0o0o

Lester punched the key code in on the receiver her was holding. "I am so not telling you where this bug is planted on Bomber." He said, giving Ranger a meaningful look.

"It's in her earring." Ranger stated flatly as he raised one eyebrow.

"You knew?!"

Ranger didn't dignify him with a response.

"Knew you would know. I owe Hector a hundred bucks. He said you would know!" he huffed out with a pout.

"Cuz, you're such an amateur! Now Shut. Up… and turn up the sound."

The received burst into life:

"_Once we're done here we also need to do something active – maybe bowling, skating? Anything you fancy?" A male voice suggested._

"_Yeah, sex. I love a bit of pussy." Came Enzo's bored reply._

Ranger nearly fell off his chair and Lester roared with laughter. Oh, this was going to be so much fun!

o0o0o0o0o

"Right! That's it! That's fucking it!" Steph growled out, grabbing the back of Enzo's hoodie and trying to strangle him with it. "We are going back to camp. I don't give a fuck whether it's on the itinerary or not, but you've really overstepped the mark this time." She fished the brand new pack of playing cards out of Enzo's pocket and stuffed them back on the nearest shelf.

"Hey! I _was_ going to pay for that!" Enzo argued.

"Yeah, like these other things?" Steph added as she pulled a bar of chocolate, three propelling pencils and a DVD out to join the cards.

"So? I don't have any money!"

"No? But here's the surprise, asshole, we do!" She added in his face before grabbing him by the arm and beginning to drag him bodily towards the exit of the shop.

"Here, let me." Ethan growled as he grabbed Enzo's other arm.

"Hey, don't hurt me!" Enzo screamed, making everyone in the store turn and look.

"Is there a problem here?" a portly, grey haired man with a badge announcing he was 'Brent, The Store Manager' on it asked as he wandered over. Concern on his face.

"No sir. This is my… nephew. I just caught him with a few unpaid items on him." Steph explained in as calm a voice as she could as she pointed to the stolen objects which lay in a unruly heap on the shelf.

"Oh. Oh! I see!" he said, blinking as the information processed. "Well, then. Best you take him home." He added finally with conviction.

Steph mentally rolled her eyes, Brent was obviously no rocket scientist but at least he wasn't about to press charges. "Yeah! His Mom is going to be rabid when she finds out what the little prick has done this time. Thank you for being so understanding" Steph added with a smile before she turned and aimed a death glare at her charge, daring him to say something.

Enzo just shrugged his shoulders "Whatever." He added as he curled his lip nonchalantly and stuffed his hands back into his pant's pockets.

"Right, best be off then!" Ralph added quickly as he gripped Enzo by the shoulders and herded him out of the door.

o0o0o0o0o

"Fuck that boy is good." Lester cooed out as he watched and listened to the exchange in Walmart.

"Do you think she will ever forgive me?" Ranger said as he shook with silent laughter.

"Maybe?… eventually?" Lester replied with a sparkle in his eye as they trailed behind their target.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph sat in the back with Enzo, who Ralph had personally buckled in, before getting into the passenger seat. Ethan fired up the powerful engine.

"I've engaged the seatbelt lock. No-one's getting out of their belts til we get back." Ethan added with a smirk in the rear view mirror that Steph immediately picked up and returned.

Leaning back in her seat she wondered if things could get any worse. Enzo had pick pocketed his way round the shops and thrown food round the food hall.

But worst of all he'd sworn loudly, using some words that even Steph had never heard before, as he clambered over the park play equipment, then pretended to offer out sweets to the local children while all the time sporting a leery grin. Three of the mothers had accosted him before Steph realised what he'd been up to and if Ralph hadn't been quicker she was sure his chance of being a father had been about to be greatly diminished.

He was the kid from hell but Steph knew there was more to him than met the eye. Something was wrong and her spidey sense was in over drive. When this things was over she was sooo going to wring the truth from Ranger, even if she did kill him in the process…

Enzo shifted in his plush, black leather seat and looked at the woman sitting next to him but far enough away that she would have to lean over in order to reach him. Perfect, he sniggered as he played with the box of matches in his pocket, rubbing them against his crotch by mistake.

His 14 year old, hormonal cock woke up, startled by the movement and a grin flickered across Enzo's face.

"Got any kleenex, I need to blow my nose." He asked innocently.

"Here kid." Steph said as she dug around in her bag then handed him an unopened handy pack.

"Thanks" he replied.

Steph turned to stare back out of the window. She was so cross with Enzo right now and looking at him was only going to raise her blood pressure. Whatever his reasons for giving Enzo to her to look after, Ranger would probably be a teeny tiny bit pissed if she returned him in several body bags.

Her charge looked at her silhouette. The broad may be slim, but her legs were long and her tits seemed high. Oh yeah, a mental image of her kneeling down and letting him slide his cock between her pert little breasts made his keen little soldier stand to attention. He shifted quietly in his seat, stuffing the Kleenex down his pants.

"Hey, what you doing?" Steph asked as she caught his actions out the corner of her eye. She looked across to see what he was up to.

"Blowing my 'nose'" he said, all wide eyed and cute while all the time rubbing his now very obvious erection through his jeans.

The penny dropped and Steph gagged. "Not in here you don't you little pervert!" she growled out as she tried to reach over and stop him.

"Ethan! Stop the car!"

"No can do, Steph. Is there a problem?" Ethan asked looking in the mirror, worry in his eyes.

At that moment Enzo grunted.

"No, not any more." She sighed out resignedly and returned to looking out of the window.


	30. Chapter 30

**Sorry for the delay, guys - RL has been hectic and I've not had a moment to myself. Hope this chapter makes up for it though. Next one is nearly complete so I plan to post it next week.**

**R&R, please, the only form of 'payment' for all the writers here in FF. Warms my heart (and after the weather we've had here that's been arctic, I sure as hell need it!) and my fingers...**

**OK, well here goes...**

Steph was livid as the engine cut and the seat belts disengaged.

"Stop him!" she yelled as Enzo ran his eyes up and down her disgusted body, winked, licked his lips then clambered, quick as a flash, out of the vehicle. Before anyone had time to react he was gone. Running into the scrubby landscape as far as his long, young legs would carry him.

"Steph, what the hell happened?" Ralph said, as he ran round the side of the vehicle, grabbing her by the shoulders and forcing her to look into his worried face as she stood in shock, staring at Enzo's retreating form.

"I gave him tissues to to to blow his nnnn _nose_!" she stumbled out her eyes wide with disbelief.

"And?…" he demanded.

"He stuffed them down his pants and and and " she took a great big lungful of air "then blew his _nose_…" her words were accompanied by actions as she held onto her crotch and thrust forward to emphasise what had happened.

Ralph took a deep breath to slow down his reaction as understanding took over then burst into laughter.

"You think it's funny?!" Steph screamed incredulously, pulling herself out of his grip and smacking him hard on the chest with both fists.

"Sorry, Steph!" Ralph sputtered out between snorts of glee. "Can't wait to see the reaction Ranger has when he finds out…" He looked at Steph.

"You have to admit that despite it being a lot creepy that a 14 year old wacked off while looking at you, not that you're not gorgeous – you are and I'm sure others have done the same thing, just not in public – but I doubt even Manoso could have planned _that_ little stunt…" he paused as he let his words sink in, hoping she hadn't noticed his words _might just_ have had a tiny bit of a confession about them.

"Now, what say you we go teach the little punk a lesson he won't forget before your man feeds him his dick on a stick, eh?" he added quickly before she thought too hard about what he may or may not have just told her, ruffling her hair.

Steph shook her head as she thought about the funny side of the scenario, she huffed out a big breath then giggled "Yeah, you're right. I have a sneaking suspicion that Enzo was our payback for getting into base camp, but I also think his latest exploit will win him a one way ticket to a very remote place!"

They bumped fists just as a loud pop, fizz bang! went off on the other side of the tents.

"Enzo!" They both yelled at once, giving each other a knowing look as they started to run in the direction of the noise.

o0o0o0o0o

"What the fuccckkk!" Ranger barked out slamming his fists onto the steering wheel before slumping back in his seat next to Lester. "I thought you said he was into _fire_, not... _firing_!" He turned and glared at his cousin who looked like he wanted to be anywhere else other than next to him right now.

Lester held his hands up in the sign for surrender. "Sorry, 'Cuz." He said "I'm just the innocent b-stander here, Hector was the one that found the little shit." He added, trying to shift the blame. Rule number eight, "when in doubt, throw your partner under the bus" he thought.

"I'm so going to have a word with Enzo when this is all over. Just hide all the knives when I do, ok?!"

Lester nodded like a bobble head before clambering out of the SUV and scuttling off to find Hector. "Why oh why the fuck me?" He whined as he rolled his eyes, muttering about the injustice of it all.

o0o0o0o0o

Jed stood holding Enzo by the shoulders of his hoodie, growling softly as he balanced the kid on his tip toes when Steph and Ralph reached them.

"What do you want me to do with him, Boss?" he asked as he nodded towards his captive.

"Put him down." Steph sighed out heavily "you don't know where he'd been."

Jed looked surprised "Don't even ask, Bro!" Ralph added, shaking his head. "But I might reveal all over a beer later…"

"I say we strip him and tie him to a tree." Jed added, helpfully.

"What like the time in 2008 when we …" Chase added as he joined the group, giving Jed a knowing look.

"Hmmm, maybe. But aren't we supposed to be guarding his body?" Jed replied, a glint of mischief in his eye.

Enzo was starting to look a little white round the edges while trying to pretend that the intimidation tactics of the huge men glaring at him wasn't having an effect.

"Yeah, but it doesn't say anywhere that we need to keep all the parts _joined_ together." came the calm reply.

"True. Go get the rope and a knife then." Jed said nonchalantly as he looked heavenward while he tried to stifle his laughter.

"No guys. I don't think that's necessary, it wasn't as if he _meant_ to throw the food round, steal cards or groom small kids in the park." Steph added, totally getting where the men were going with this conversation. She too wanted to know exactly what the deal was. "And it wasn't as if he whacked off all _over_ the leather seats on the way here. He _did_ keep it in his pants and he _did_ use some Kleenex, ya know?"

By now a few more men had joined them and they were clearly very unimpressed with Enzo's pyrotechnics as well as Steph's revelation.

All of them were watching with glee at the subtle changes that were taking place to the colour of Enzo's face even as he stood tall, trying to look tough.

Currently, pale grey would have been an accurate description.

"Well I say we gut him." Someone growled out. "No-one disses our girl. Fuck man, if Ranger ever found out…"

"Nah, let's just tie him up and leave him for the wolves... or the bears. Maybe paint his dick with some honey for the bees to find…" Someone else added gruffly.

"Fool! It's far too cold for the bees and way too early for the wolves to be out – orders were that we return him this afternoon, our furry friends won't feed until much _much_ later…"

A rumble of agreement at the logic went round as heads nodded and coughs hid snorts of laughter. This was so much fun.

Enzo was now a lovely shade of pale green and he'd started to quietly whimper.

"Awww, looks like our poor boy done wet hisself." Someone chuckled out as a wet patch spread out across the front of the boy's jeans and down one leg.

"Ok, fun's over!" Connor said, realising that perhaps things had gone a little too far. Granted the boy was trouble and had been their reward for storming Ranger's fortress, but they needed to get even with Manoso, not traumatise him completely.

o0o0o0o0o

Lester looked at Ranger, concern on his face. "Do you think we need to step in?!"

Ranger shook his head. This whole payback thing had totally back fired. What had they been thinking when they'd let Hector get involved?! Maybe he should have gotten a kid with learning difficulties or tourettes or… something, anything! He dropped his head into his hands. Why did everything seem so out of control!

Trust Steph to bring out the worst in a plan!

"_Ok, fun's over!" _they heard Connor say_._

Thank fuck for that. Enzo was not about to be cut up for fish food, well not until Ranger got hold of him, anyway.

"_Right, you little punk." _Connor added_. "Let's get you out of those soiled clothes and cleaned up. Then you and I are going to have a little _chat_… capiche?"_

The sounds of a minor scuffle could be heard but a small whimper was the only audible reply.

Ranger looked at his watch.

"They've only got another 50 minutes then they need to give him up, Cuz." Les said hopefully.

"Yeah. A shower should take say… 5 minutes, then 2 minutes to shove some clothes on him… that leaves 40 minutes for them to play with him before they need to start heading back this way. Nah, he'll be fine." Ranger replied, looking anything other than convinced.

o0o0o0o0o

"I feel like I've let everyone down, Chase." Steph said with a sigh as she grabbed a cup of coffee from the main tent, Chase and Mungo at her side.

Enzo was with Jed, Ethan and Connor and was currently having his body, and probably his mouth washed out with soap. She shuddered to think what they were doing to other parts of him.

"S'ok, Sweetie." he said, rubbing her upper arm gently. "It's not your fault that we got that little punk assed kid."

"Yeah it is – it was my idea to raid Chez Manoso and I think Enzo was payback."

"Steph. We didn't have to go with your idea, we _all_ thought it was a brilliant one. Hell, half the boys wanted to get in on the act just because it was sooo insane. It just happens that we like insane."

"But…"

Mungo raised his good arm as he decided to join in the conversation. "Steph, I don't think any of us have had so much fun in ages! So what if we don't win this challenge. As you said before, they wouldn't have introduced the whole idea of a joker card if we hadn't rattled their cages. Hell no!"

At that moment Connor, Ethan and Jed walked in with a very subdued and damp looking Enzo, however at least he was no longer green. They'd managed to find him some pants that fitted and clean trainers but apart from that he looked to be wearing his own clothes.

Pushing him forward Connor stood to one side and said "Steph, Enzo has something to say" as he gave him a menacing and knowing look.

"Sorry, Miss Plum." Enzo said softly to the floor.

"I didn't quite catch that." Connor growled out. "And look at Miss Plum when you're apologising."

Enzo snapped his head up to look at Steph "Sorry, Miss Plum." He repeated a bit louder.

"We had a bit of a _chat_ while he was getting cleaned up so I think we're all sorted. Right Enzo?"

Enzo nodded.

Steph noticed he had a bit of a bruise coming up on his cheek and another above his eye. "Ok. Apology accepted!" she said brightly. "Right." She added, rubbing her hands together. "We have maybe half an hour. What say we go and play a bit of baseball?"

Steph put her cup down and waved at everyone in the tent. "Anyone want to go hit a homerun or two?!" she asked as she exited the canvas.

"I'll tell you later." Connor whispered so that only Steph could hear. She nodded in understanding and the team eagerly followed her. Yay, time for some fun with a bat and a ball.

o0o0o0o0o

The game was fun, even if there had been loads of 'creative play' otherwise known as good natured cheating.

The bat had in fact been a frying pan and the ball one used for tennis rather than baseball, but that didn't seem to matter.

No-one hit a home run, or even reached 4th base at all. Anyone who got near was ambushed before they could get with five yards of it.

Despite the appalling flouting of the rules, the half hour went by in a flash but the one thing that came out of it was that Enzo was a really good pitcher.

A really _really good pitcher._

On the way back to Ranger's hangar, Steph quizzed him on it.

"So Enzo. Now that you're acting like a regular kid and not something straight out of a gang, wanna explain a few things…" she said, looking at him pointedly. "Like how you got so good at throwing a ball."

Enzo ducked his head, twiddled his fingers a few times and took a deep breath.

"Mighta been a gang member." He started with softly as he looked up at her.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

A pregnant pause filled the cabin.

"And…?" Steph asked putting her hand on his lower arm which stilled his nervous hands.

"I got caught. Hector. 'Bout a year ago."

"And…" Steph repeated.

"He got me out. Sorted my head out, found out I was accurate with a missile and the rest is history."

"Seems too complicated to have been that easy." Steph added. "So, what really happened."

"I was into drugs, fire, pussy. Usual stuff. Gotten a bit of a rep for all things nasty. Even killed a man…" Enzo looked up, his eyes filled with remorse.

Steph took one look and realised he was just a screwed up, over done kid. "I've killed a man too.." Steph said as she gathered him to her and hugged him.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Didn't make me feel too good."

"Me either."

They sat, silently, holding each other for the rest of their ride, nothing left to be said.

As they got out Enzo turned to her "You really are cool" he said sincerely, then added with a gleam in his eye "for an old chick."

"Yeah, whatever, kid." She replied, grabbing him and giving him a noogie before pushing him away playfully.

"See ya!" he grinned out as he walked away.

"Wouldn't wanna be ya!" she yelled back.

From the edge of the hangar door, Ranger stood and watched. He'd never been so proud of his woman as he was right now. As usual, she had out played and out smarted him and yet it made his heart and possibly another part of his 'brain' swell. Shame he couldn't rig it so that she won the points for this game, New York had won this round. They had done everything right and still managed to stay out in the field till the end of the allotted time - textbook.

Their eyes met across the black top. "Proud of you Babe." He mouthed.

Steph smiled with delight then headed back to the SUV. Climbing up she turned and blew him a kiss before climbing inside.

He grinned his 200 watt smile "Dios! What you do to me, Babe." He said, under his breath before saluting and heading back inside.


	31. Chapter 31

**Hi Guys, last chapter before I tie up the ends in an epilogue (see, told ya I had this last chapter pretty much completed - bet that surprised you!)**

**Anyway, thank you so much for your incredible support and kind words (especially when things got a bit tough in RL) as well as your enthusiasm for this story and its characters.**

**Nearly there guys. Please let me have your reviews - I'm not posting the epilogue until I have 30 reviews (learnt my lesson from the last time - ha ha!)**

**xxx**

Once she'd helped pack up camp and caught up with her friends at Boston and Trenton, Steph walked towards the camp fire then stopped near the edge so that she could watch the men as they stood round the massive pit where the pig was roasting. Laughing and relaxing now that their contest was over, the groups of bodies were intermittently revealed then shrouded in plumes of smoke from the flames.

She had one hand shoved in a pocket and the other was firmly wrapped round her ice cold beer. All was well in her world as not only was the contest over, but tonight she would be reunited with Batman's sheets, Batman's body, Batman's…

"Penny for them, Babe." A soft voice whispered into her ear. She smiled as she leant back into hard muscle and a beating heart. She blushed and he chuckled as he realised what she'd been thinking about.

"Later, Babe." he whispered softly as he drew her against him and began to nibble gently on her ear. From a distance she thought she heard Lester yell "get a room!" They both sniggered softly and Ranger stopped his actions as he wrapped himself further around her and inhaling her scent as he rested his head on her shoulder so he could watch his staff enjoying themselves.

"This has been quite the experience, Batman." She said softly, pulling his focus back to her.

"How so?" he asked lazily as he began to nuzzle her not so soft curls. No matter how you looked at it, Steph was positive she had collected a few furry animals as the days had passed. Now she could totally see the attraction of a buzz cut. Somehow Ranger didn't seem to be bothered about the additions to her nest, though.

"Well for one, we really taught you about Atlanta's sneaky side." She giggled.

Ranger playfully swatted her ass "Yeah, yeah. Always expect the unexpected." He deadpanned as he leaned around her and took a swig from her beer bottle.

"Hey, get your own, Buster!" she grumbled good naturedly, pretending to be cross.

"Can't. Would need to let go and I don't plan on doing that for a while." He whispered, grinding his growing 'problem' into her back.

"Ah!" she replied, all knowing.

"Ah indeed." He replied as he grabbed her beer again.

Contented silence surrounded them as they observed the people that made Rangeman the high calibre company that it was and it allowed Steph to relect back over the last 24 hours.

Playing their Joker when they did, Miami had aced the assault course and gone on to win the overall tournament, but Atlanta had come a very respectable joint second with Boston. Trenton came 4th which left New York in last place. Even then it had been tight – only 4 points between first and last place.

Thanks to Enzo's antics they hadn't stood a chance during the body guarding challenge, but despite the fact he'd managed to set fire to two of Atlanta's vehicles and a locked wooden crate before Jed had managed to sneak up on him Steph didn't feel cheated. Later that evening Connor had filled her in on the bits she'd missed out on.

_Flashback:_

_Connor walked up to the edge of Steph's tent "knock, knock." He said as he walked in without waiting for a reply._

"_Hey! I might have been indecent!" Steph grumbled out as she looked up at him from her cot, clothed in all but her boots. She dropped her brand new Kindle on the bed beside her._

"_I should be so lucky." He grinned suggestively._

"_Pervert!"_

"_You wish!"_

_Good natured silence filled the air for a few seconds._

"_So, you wanna fill me in on what happened with Enzo when you dragged him off for a shower then?"_

"_Yeah. Can't believe the little punk really fooled us with his geekiness."_

"_Geekiness? Is that even a word?"_

"_Sounds like one to me. Anyways, little shit really did a number huh? Can't believe he tried to torch a couple of the SUV's. Only a few burn marks though. Never knew they were so bomb proof..." he added with a knowing smirk._

"_Ha ha. You are sooo not funny." Steph rolled her eyes and pretended to be offended as she folded her arms. "And the supplies?"_

"_Yeah, punk assed kid only managed to destroy one crate. Funnily enough it was the one with the stolen toilet paper in it." _

_They both chuckled. Thanks inadvertently to Enzo, Ranger had gotten even after all._

"_Once we'd stripped him down, both physically and mentally..."_

_"You weren't too rough, I hope."_

_"Nah, just a coupla slaps, to make him focus and maybe we were the ones doing the washing... Anyway, looks like Enzo was Hector Gonzales 'contribution' to the games." He used air quotes to emphasis the word contribution. "Looks like he was given a very specific brief, telling him that it was pay back for something we'd done so he had carte blanche to do anything he liked to mess with us." Connor explained. "Apparently he was told to 'look like an angel, behave like the devil'. If I ever meet this Gonzales guy, I'll…"_

"_Leave it, Connor. You so don't want to cross Hector, believe me. Much as I adore him, he's seriously bad ass ex gang, with two teardrop tats under his eye and he's as scary as fuck. He moves to the beat of a very different tune, so even Ranger has been known to tread carefully at certain times."_

_Connor nodded, stunned by her description but at the same time not surprised that they were obviously friends. She really did seem to bring out the best in people he concluded as he mentally raised his eyes to Heaven and saluted Megan._

"_So, tomorrow we find out who won, huh?" he asked, changing the subject._

"_Yeah. Doubt it was us, but it's been a fun ride!" Steph grinned out as their conversation changed to other matters._

_End flashback_

"What did you say to him, Babe?" Ranger asked as he gestured to a very thoughtful but relaxed looking Enzo.

Steph giggled "we talked about what had happened to him in his past and how he's learning to be a kid again, thanks to Hector." She replied as she caught Enzo's eye, they nodded and smiled at each other.

Ranger knew exactly what they'd both discussed so squeezed her tighter.

"What's that for?" she asked, turning in his arms to look at him.

"Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?"

"You know, don't you?"

Ranger had the decency to look guilty.

"Busted!" He thought.

"Not too sore at losing?" he said after a few seconds, trying to change the subject.

"I'm not done with you Manoso." She said "I _will_ wring it out of you, you know that don't you?" she added, jabbing at his chest with her pointer finger.

"Babe." He said, knowing that this was far from over. His cock twitched, Dios, he was looking forward to her interrogations! "Not now, Manoso!" the voice of reason warned him.

"So, coming second, not quite first. You sure you're not disappointed? At one point you must have thought you had it in the bag."

"Maybe at one point towards the end, especially when you introduced the Jokers, but on the whole we decided we were the total underdogs and we had nothing to lose. Considering what a dysfunctional bunch of fuckups we all were to begin with, we figured why not just enjoy ourselves and twist the odds to our favour any way we could."

"Not sure how to take that, Babe. Sounds like Atlanta is back to square one!"

"Oh, I don't think you have anything to worry about. My boys are quite the team players now, especially the likes of Mungo!"

"Your boys, your team, eh?"

"Yeah! Ranger they were amazing and I love every one of them. They have come together so well as a team thanks to this whole exercise."

Ranger grinned in her hair then kissed her clumpy curls. "I think you may have had a hand in their, er… development but it's still good to know Babe that I've helped in a small way." Now was not the time to weird her out with what her boys had probably done behind closed doors when she'd first arrived and turned their world upside down. Her reaction to Enzo reinforced his decision to remain silent.

Just then Connor wandered over and held out a beer bottle filled hand to Ranger who moved Steph slightly over but still in front of him so that he could accept it.

"Gotta hand it to you, Carlos, great tournament and great party!" Connor said as a smile ghosted his lips.

Ranger grinned back as he took a swig.

"Grub's up!" Ella yelled and cheers sounded off around them as everyone present started to make their way over to the fire. Plates bearing buns and salad and with cutlery in hand they all lined up and waited happily for a hunk of the succulent pork Luis was cutting off.

Steph stepped out of Ranger's embrace and grabbed Connor to hug him fiercely. "Knew you could do it, so proud of you and I know Megan would have been too." she whispered into his ear before dancing out of his stunned embrace and back towards Ranger.

"Time to feed the beast" she giggled out as her stomach made itself known. Grabbing Ranger's hand she set off to the back of the queue, dragging him behind her.

"He doesn't stand a chance, does he?" Tank said quietly as he slid up behind Connor who was standing with his mouth open.

"Are they always like this?" He asked.

"Nah. Sometimes she lets him win." Tank chuckled.


	32. Epilogue

**Thanks for your wonderful reviews – didn't quite hit the 30 I'd hoped for but maybe I was being a little greedy but perhaps you can send this story out with a flurry (ok, so I'm a review slut – not going to be ashamed of it!)**

**So, this really is the end of this one. Hope it's all been worth the wait!**

**:o)**

Ranger found what he was searching for and stood, dressed to kill in a black tux with his long black hair pulled tight into the back of his neck in a black leather tie, a pale blue buttonniere in his lapel. He motioned to Steph and Connor who were seated on a nearby bench to keep out of the heat of the afternoon sun and the couple got up to join him. Connor was dressed in a single breasted black lounge suit and Steph was wearing a knee length simple, form fitting sleeveless white dress with subtle beaded detail round the neckline that flared out slightly at the hips, show casing the tiny bump that nestled there. Almost flat, thanks to her seemingly permanently swollen ankles, pale blue satin Mary Janes on her feet matched with the rose in Ranger's jacket

The only sounds around them came from the impatient sounds of busy traffic and the staccato drum beat of huge construction projects that bustled around them, oblivious to the emotions that hung thickly in the air.

Steph smiled sadly as she moved slightly faster, pulling a reluctant Connor along by his hand and it wasn't long before the three of them met in front of the long, waist high bronze parapet that was the sole focus of their rendezvous. The everyday sounds were now replaced by the soft thunderous sounds of cascading water.

Silently Connor traced the words etched into the metal as a tear slowly tipped from his eye and slid down his cheek. He didn't notice it.

Megan Rose Armitage

William Frank Deary

Mary Louise Deary

Vanessa Grace Deary

He stared without seeing as tears continued to wander unhindered down his face before hurling themselves, seemingly recklessly, from the line of his jaw and onto the pavement – oddly reminiscent of a desperate act captured on camera which spread round the stunned world like wildfire so many years ago on this very spot.

Steph grabbed his hand again and gave it a squeeze to give him comfort and he briefly raised his eyes and gave her a watery smile before returning to the words at the end of his fingertips. The midday sun glinted from a large solitary diamond on Steph's left hand - the only piece of jewellery she was wearing - as Ranger wrapped his arm round her from behind, separating her from Connor as he splayed his hands protectively over her abdomen.

They stood for what seemed like hours "lest we forget" someone finally said quietly and all three of them nodded.

The trio split up, Connor continued to stare at the names of his lost family, seemingly unaware that he was now on his own as the others headed off towards a different section of the parapet, searching out the segment that was dedicated to the firemen that were lost on that awful day.

When they reached their destination, Ranger finally found the words 'Harry Arthur Plum' which lay before them, etched for eternity.

Leaning her head against his shoulder, Steph let out a deep sorrowful sigh.

"Babe." He said, pulling her closer, lending her his strength.

"They will not be forgotten." He finally added.

They all stood lost in their thoughts and memories of that horrendous, life changing day so long ago, as darkness slunk up and began to wrap itself around them and lights began to glow from the bases of the two monuments like fingers searching, reaching into the darkening sky.

Eventually, the lone man walked over to the couple.

"Thank you." He said. His simple words conveying so much more.

Ranger nodded before straightening up and glancing at his watch.

"Time to go, I don't think Rees and Vera would forgive us if we're late."

"Yeah, Ranger is never late." Steph giggled "and Les would never let him forget it if he's late for our big day too!"

A lightbulb went off in Connor's head. "Hey, isn't it bad luck to see your bride on your wedding day?" he asked bemusedly.

"Don't think it matters for a joint wedding." Steph stage whispered.

Ranger smirked "Babe."

"What? Works for me!" she added pretending to be offended as her hands wandered up the outside of his jacket as he hugged her close.

Everyone nodded at the relief this happy banter had provided. As they turned to leave Connor thought he heard a woman's voice whispering his name.

"Sorry Steph, what was that?" he asked as he turned round, he thought he'd heard someone say "It's time."

"Didn't say anything." Replied a confused Steph, her eyebrows knitting together monetarily in mild confusion. "You ok?"

Connor nodded his head slightly then heard the voice again. It sounded familiar. He tipped his head slightly and listened again.

"I'm so proud of, Con, you've come so far. Go, live your life to the max, you deserve it. We'll be watching and smiling." It whispered.

"Megan?"

"Mhmmm. Be the man you know you can be, fulfil our dream, Con." The voice added softly, smiling with amusement.

"Megan?!" He whispered again, reverently.

"You OK, Buddy?" Ranger asked concerned as he put his hand on Connor's shoulder.

Connor gulped then nodded. "Never better." he added, his eyes searching the empty air around him.

The three of them turned and began to walk away.

"Don't ever forget us. But it's time for you to be move on and be happy… to love again." The voice whispered.

Connor nodded.

"You sure you're ok?" Steph asked, grabbing his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze which Connor returned.

"Yeah, never better." He replied. "I'll catch you up, just be a minute."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, we mustn't keep the other happy couple waiting. I'll meet you there."

Ranger nodded and sensing Connor's need to be alone for a couple more minutes he softly tugged on Steph's arm. "Let's get that weight off your feet, Babe." He said. "It's just a couple of blocks to the hotel and it's a nice night." Steph smiled in agreement.

"See you at the altar." She grinned at Connor before the pair moved off.

"I don't know if you can still hear me." Connor continued.

The wind shifted and seemed to caress his face. He leant into its soft touch.

"There's so much more I wanted to say." He added, his eyes filling again as his heart seemed to constrict painfully in his chest.

"I wanted to meet our baby. I wanted to know what he or she looked like…"

"She…"

"I wanted to know that my baby sister was happy…"

"She was so in love…"

"I'm glad. Oh I've so missed you, Megs…"

"I know…"

"Please don't leave me ever again." He added panicking slightly as he sensed her presence lessening.

"Gotta go, Con. I'll be watching, move on, Baby, it's time to love again. Please love again…"

"I don't know if I can…"

"You will… when the time is right…"

He sighed, the strength of her voice was weakening.

"Thank you." He whispered fiercely. "For loving me so much…"

"Go grab the life we never had, for me? Please?" Her voice replied with just as much passion even as her strength faded and the last word was only an echo.

A fading memory…

He nodded, no more words seemed to be needed.

None would have come out anyway.

He knew at that moment she'd finally gone.

Taking a deep breath to settle his faltering breath, he closed his eyes to push out the last of the tears.

As he stepped away from Ground Zero he turned and bumped into a petite blonde with startling grey eyes. "sorry!" he said as he returned her to an upright position. She giggled at his apparent nervousness. The sound went straight to his heart.

"That's ok." She added, gently removing the hands that still held her.

"Oh, sorry!" he said again as he released her, flushing with embarrassment.

"I just wanted to check that you were alright. I don't mean to sound nosy but you seemed in need of a friend." She explained as she handed him a kleenex.

"Silly really." He replied. "This is the first time I've had the courage to come here. It's been… cathartic. I needed to …" he was lost for words as he dabbed at his eyes, self consciously.

"I understand." The woman added. "I lost my husband that day. We'd only been married a month." She added, searing pain momentarily flooding her face. Taking a breath to settle herself "If you ever just want to talk…" she continued brightly.

"Yeah, thanks." He added then looked at his watch. "Crap! Gonna be late!" he winced out. "Friend's getting married." He added, seemingly reluctant to leave this unexpected, albeit tenuous, link to his past.

"Gimme a call if you want to talk." She added, rifling through a small satchel slung diagonally across her body and pulling out a card which she handed him.

"Will do!" he waved as he turned and began to leave, glancing quickly at the card he was holding. "Martha Wrobel, friendly ear to those who need it." The card said.

Looking heavenward, he smiled. Perhaps he would be ok after all.

**So, waddya think? Please let me know, it's my only form of payment and makes all the hours of soul searching for the right words worth it.**

**Bye for now.**

**xxx**


End file.
